Harvey Barnes says first-leg performances showed Magpies can compete with Europe’s best
Newcastle United believe they can create a memorable European moment in their history by defeating Barcelona at Camp Nou, after matching the Spanish champions in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie at St James’ Park.
Harvey Barnes thought he had secured a famous victory when his 86th-minute strike put Newcastle ahead on Tuesday night. But the hosts were denied at the last moment when Lamine Yamal converted a penalty with the final kick of stoppage time to seal a 1-1 draw.
Despite the late setback, confidence remains high in the Newcastle camp ahead of next week’s second leg at Camp Nou. Barnes believes the performance showed that Eddie Howe’s side are capable of competing with one of Europe’s most decorated clubs.
“It is still wide open,” Barnes said. “It would have been amazing to go there with a 1-0 lead, but we’re level. We’ve got a chance to take the game to them and see where we’re at.
“We’re a team full of self-belief and there are so many positives to take. Next week we’ll be bang up for it. For a lot of the game we were the better side, we controlled big parts of it and looked really dangerous.”
Newcastle impressed throughout much of the match, particularly in defence. Lewis Hall delivered an energetic display at left-back, working tirelessly to contain Barcelona’s teenage winger Yamal while helping Newcastle maintain pressure higher up the pitch. Robert Lewandowski was shackled by Dan Burn.
The Premier League side limited Barcelona to scraps of opportunities. The visitors managed nine shots, with only two on target, and produced an expected goals figure of just 0.46 from open play. Newcastle, meanwhile, registered 16 attempts and missed very close moments before finally taking their lead.
Barnes said the performance showed the Magpies have the ability to challenge Europe’s elite.
“We’ve shown it time and time again that when we play at our top, top level we can compete with these top teams,” said Barnes. “There’s been too many occasions this season where we’ve dropped below those levels and it’s cost us in the league, but in the Champions League we have hit our top form.
“You’ve got to respect the quality that [Barcelona] have but not respect them on the pitch. We pressed them from minute one and tried to do that the whole game. You can’t let them come here, dictate the game and show their class.
“You’ve got to make it horrible and ugly for them. We limited their chances and limited their ball in and around the box and that’s credit to the whole team.”
