Barcelona striker Marcus Rashford scored two brilliant goals to burst Newcastle’s bubble on their return to the Champions League.
Despite dominating early on, the hosts could not turn that into a lead and they were punished by man-of-the-match Rashford in the second half, before Anthony Gordon pulled one back in the 90th minute.
Our chief football reporter, Craig Hope, was there to bring you his thoughts…
Rashford’s radiant return
Oh how Newcastle could have done with Rashford in their XI. He produced the game’s first moment of predatory instinct just before the hour and followed it up with a stupendous strike 10 minutes later – and with that Barcelona were the winners.
Rashford was not a threat in the same way Anthony Elanga was for Newcastle. But what Rashford had was end-product when it mattered. This night, back in his home country, should prove hugely significant for his future with both Barcelona and England. He was the difference-maker. Newcastle, by contrast, had none.
Howe’s Woltemade mistake
If Nick Woltemade had started, Newcastle would have won. It was a bold call by Eddie Howe not to play his £69million striker on the back of his match-winning debut at the weekend – and the Newcastle boss got it wrong.
By resting the German, Howe reverted to a front three of Elanga, Gordon and Harvey Barnes, who had not scored a goal this season. And so, to no-one’s surprise, Newcastle were all bark and no bite during a first half in which they started fast before fading. That’s what happens when promise leads nowhere.
Too little, too late
Elanga enjoyed his best 45 minutes by far since his £55m summer arrival but, without a striker to profit from his good work, chances came and went, most notably when Gordon swung at fresh air from Elanga’s cut-back. It brought home just how big a blow the loss of Yoane Wissa to a knee injury is for Newcastle. The £55m striker will not make his debut for another month at least.
But they still had enough moments and territory to take what would have been a deserved lead – and they would have done, with a striker on the pitch.
Woltemade arrived with Barca 1-0 up, but by then it was an hour too late. Howe said afterwards he has to manage his minutes and, while that is right, this felt like an opportunity missed – quite literally at times!
Murphy’s despair
Just as surprising as the decision not to play Woltemade was Jacob Murphy coming out of the side. Yes, his replacement Elanga did well, but Murphy was tremendous during the 1-0 win over Wolves on Saturday, creating the goal for Woltemade. I thought Murphy and Woltemade could emerge as the new Keith Gillespie and Tino Asprilla here!
Alas, Murphy was very unlucky not to feature from the off and laid on the goal for Gordon after his introduction. To be fair, Howe says he is nursing an achilles problem, but Murphy is the type who would have risen to this occasion regardless.
Why the game did NOT fit the huge occasion
The occasion felt huge, as big as the tifo unfurled by Wor Flags from the East Stand roof before kick-off. But did it feel like a huge game, upon which the Champions League destiny of either side depended? No.
Now that would be true of the opening match even in the old group format, but this bloated version really does rob these early contests of any real jeopardy. There were points on offer, of course, but the relevance of events was more significant from a club folklore perspective than it was the immediacy of a 36-team league table, in which 24 progress…
One area in which Howe thought he had few concerns was defence. Before this game, Newcastle had conceded just one goal all season with 11 men on the pitch. In golden oldies Nick Pope (33), Kieran Trippier (35), Fabian Schar (33), Dan Burn (33) – as well as Tino Livramento (22) – Howe has a settled, experienced and wily back five. However, against elite sides such as Barcelona maybe they do need some younger legs to see out a full match. They were great for an hour…
One point Howe was asked to clear up afterwards, though, was why Schar stayed on the pitch after a whack to the head. Moments later he lost Rashford for the first goal. The Newcastle boss said he was told by medical staff that Schar was fine to continue.
