Probable lineups:
Newcastle: Ramsdale; Trippier, Thiaw, Burn, Hall; Ramsey, Tonali, Joelinton; Elanga y Gordon.
FC Barcelona: Joan Garcia; Eric Garcia, Cubarsí, Gerard Martín, JoÒo Cancelo; Pedri, Married; Lamine Yamal, Fermín Lopez, Rashford; and Lewandowski.
Arbitrator: Marco Guida (ITA).
Estadio: St James’ Park.
Time: 21.00 hours.
22 years after their last confrontation at St Jame`s Park, the FC Barcelona visits English Newcastle in the match of first leg of the Champions League round of 16 in a meeting where sports is mixed with non-sports after the exchange of accusations between Xavi Hernández and Joan Laporta.
Barça He already assaulted the English fiefdom last September during the first day of the group stage (1-2) in a match without Lamine Yamal that had Marcus Rashford as its scoring star.
A little less than a week before the elections for the presidency of the Barça club are held with Joan Laporta and Víctor Font, the former player and former culé coach has fully entered the campaign after accuse Laporta of having frustrated Leo Messi’s return to Barça in 2023.
On March 19, 2003, the last duel between the Spanish and English, Xavi Hernández played 45 minutes of a group stage match that ended with Barça victory 0-2Barcelona’s only victory in the Newcastle fiefdom after two confrontations.
Before, in September 1997, also in a Champions League group stage match, the result was favorable to the British, who took the three points thanks to a hat-trick by Faustino Asprilla, while Luis Enrique and Luis Figothey closed the gap for Barça (3-2).
At the Camp Nou, FC Barcelona won both matches, the one from the 1997/98 campaign 1-0, with a solitary goal from Giovanni Silva assisted by Pep Guardiola, and the the 2002/03, with Louis van Gaal on the Barça bench, thanks to the 3-1 with goals from Dani García, Kluivert and Motta.
On those occasions, Leo Messi, object of the controversy was not on the field of play, but the shadow of the Barça legend seems to fly over the St Jame’s Par stadiumk due to the controversy unleashed in which the president of the League Javier Tebas has also intervened, denying Xavi’s words.
Tebas denies Xavi in ’Estudio Estadio’: “That’s not true”
Laporta commented that Xavi’s words “hurt and surprised” him. although he has commented that “the facts give him peace of mind”, since they have shown that he did “what he had to do”, and he understands that he is hurt because “with the same players, Xavi lost and Flick wins”, after regretting that the Terrassa coach has “let himself be used” by Fontsecond in the 2021 elections and the only candidate to unseat Laporta.
He has also spoken about it Hansi Flickalthough without giving too many details. The German stated at a press conference that he and Xavi “are colleagues” and that he knows “the truth”, although he preferred not to delve into the matter.
Lamine’s inertia
On a purely sporting level, Marcus Rashford has options to startalthough now Lamine Yamal seems untouchable and perhaps the one who needs a break is Raphinha. Robert Lewandowski also points to ownership to the detriment of Ferran Torres.
Not many more changes are expected in the eleven of Hansi Flick who continues to take care of Gavi, hoping to be able to count on him soon and who will be in Newcastle pending his medical discharge. The German coach also has the casualties of Frenkie de Jong, Andreas Christensen, Jules Koundé and Alejandro Balde.
