Newcastle vs Barcelona Prediction: Back the Toon to START FAST

It feels a bit like déjà vu all over again as Yogi Berra once said as Barcelona have made their way to the North East of England to play Newcastle United in the Champions League. This time though, it'll be over a two-legged knock-out.

Our Spanish football expert has been given the assignment for this once and he likes the hosts to get off to a fast start. You can read why and all the latest Team News, Predicted Lineups and his two Best Bets for the match here on Betfred Insights as we explore Mark's Newcastle vs Barcelona Predictions...

Barcelona head to St James' Park for the second time this season on Tuesday night. Newcastle are bidding to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League for the very first time, and they'll need to make home advantage count to give themselves a fighting chance next week. 

The clubs met on the opening matchday in the league phase. The Magpies were really competitive in the first half of that game, but Pedri and Frenkie de Jong ultimately won the midfield battle, and a brace from Marcus Rashford sealed a 2-1 victory on Tyneside for the Catalans. 

Six months on, the stakes are even higher this week. This is Newcastle's most important European match in a generation, and they'll be roared on by 50,000 Geordies, who'd be forgiven for not knowing exactly what to expect from their team. 

Injuries have contributed to a mixed campaign, with Eddie Howe's side currently down in 12th place in the Premier League, still a point behind bitter rivals Sunderland. They were knocked out of the FA Cup on Saturday, with Manchester City winning 3-1 at St James' Park in a fifth-round tie that saw both managers rotate their teams ahead of big European matches. 

That result marked a seventh defeat in the space of 10 domestic fixtures for Newcastle. It's hardly form to inspire belief heading into the knockout stages of the Champions League, but they have put in some good performances in this competition during that spell. 

The Magpies finished the league phase with a very creditable 1-1 draw away to holders PSG. They backed that up by thrashing Qarabağ 9-3 on aggregate in the play-off round. A 2-1 victory over in-form Manchester United in the Premier League last week, after playing with 10 men for more than half the game, should also serve as a warning to the reigning Spanish champions. 

Barcelona are on top of La Liga again, with a four-point lead on Real Madrid. With their only serious title challengers currently very unconvincing, Hansi Flick's team look good to successfully defend their title. However, the Champions League is the prize they really want, with 11 years having passed since they last won it. 

After seeing off Newcastle back in September, Barcelona went on to have a mixed league-phase campaign. A home defeat against an under-strength PSG and a 3-0 loss away against Chelsea highlighted their defensive flaws, as did a 3-3 draw in Belgium against Club Brugge. 

However, they recovered to take advantage of a favourable run of fixtures and win their final three games in order to seal a top-eight finish. Having been handed a favourable-looking knockout path for the second season running, Barça will again back themselves to reach the semi-finals. 

On their day, Flick's side are arguably the greatest attacking force in the competition. They were at their very best last week when they tore into Atlético Madrid for 90 minutes in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final, winning the match 3-0, with Pedri, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha shining. 

However, that wasn't enough to turn the tie around, with a 4-0 defeat in the first leg evidence of how vulnerable the Catalans can be when their high-risk attacking football doesn't quite click. 

Team News: 

Newcastle would have dearly loved to have had their captain Bruno Guimarães available for this tie, but he remains a major injury absentee. Lewis Miley, Fabian Schär and Emil Krafth are also sidelined. 

Howe is likely to recall a number of players who were only on the bench in the FA Cup on Saturday. Anthony Gordon should return up front, with the hosts likely to pack the attack with pace as they bid to exploit their opponents' high line. 

Barcelona travelled directly to Newcastle from Bilbao following their 1-0 win over Athletic Club on Saturday. Yamal scored the only goal in that match, but a number of regulars were rested. The likes of Pedri, Raphinha and Fermín López should return to the lineup here. 

The visitors are missing their first-choice full-backs with both Jules Koundé and Alejandro Balde sidelined through injury. De Jong is the other major absentee, while Andreas Christensen is also out again. Gavi has travelled to Tyneside, but is not expected to feature in a game of this magnitude after more than six months out. 

Match Odds: 

Barcelona are the 6/5 favourites to win the first leg, which would leave them in a very commanding position. Newcastle are on offer at 15/8, while the Draw is priced at 3/1. 

If you're expecting the hosts to be competitive, you can also back Newcastle to win either half at 5/6. Howe's side are given a 10/11 chance of netting over 1.5 goals, while they're available at 3/1 to win a match that sees both teams score. 

Alternatively, you can back Barcelona to win and Over 2.5 goals at 9/5. If you're expecting plenty of attacking action at each end, Both teams to score in both halves is on offer at 6/1, while you can back the visitors to score the last goal at 4/5. 

Robert Lewandowski is the 5/1 favourite to score first, while he's on offer at 13/10 to score anytime. You can back in-form Yamal to get on the scoresheet at 6/4, while Raphinha is on offer at 7/4 in the same market. 

From a home perspective, Gordon looks good as a 7/4 anytime goalscorer bet, while you can back Yoane Wissa to strike at odds of 8/5. 

*You can bet on the match and check out all of our Betting Markets on the Newcastle vs Barcelona Odds page on betfred.com

Bet 1 - First team to score - Newcastle @ 1/1 

Barcelona have a habit of starting games slowly. They let in four goals before the break last month against Atlético Madrid in the cup, while 65% of the league goals they've conceded have also come prior to the interval. Those issues have been very evident in Europe. They have a first-half goal difference of -2 in the Champions League this season, compared to +10 after the break. 

By contrast, Newcastle have been outstanding in the first half of their matches in this competition, scoring 15 times and conceding just twice in the first 45 minutes. They'll want to get the crowd involved as soon as possible here, and those trends point towards value in backing the hosts to score first at 1/1. 

Bet 2 - Over 2.5 goals & Anthony Gordon 1+ shots on target @ 5/6 

Newcastle's best chance in this tie is surely to take risks and play attacking football in the first leg. Barcelona have a 100% home record since moving back to Camp Nou, but they do have spells on the road where they look very vulnerable for prolonged periods. 

Flick has shown little interest in making any major tactical shifts to rectify that, and is still likely to play positively here, even with two defensive regulars missing. 

That should lead to quite an open game, and Gordon is certainly one player who could profit. He has been exceptional in Europe this season, with only Kylian Mbappé bettering his 10-goal return in this competition since the start of the league phase. 

Given that, I'm using the Bet Builder to back Over 2.5 goals and Gordon to have 1+ shots on target at 5/6. 

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You can check out Mark's Football Betting Tips along with those from the rest of the Betfred Insights Football writers on our Football home page...