Yamal's spot kick spares Barcelona from loss at Newcastle

Daniel Olmo, Barcelona's Spanish midfielder, was fouled by Newcastle United's German defender Malick Thiaw during the UEFA Champion's League round of 16 football match between Newcastle United and FC Barcelona at St James' Park in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, north east England on March 10, 2026.

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Lamine Yamal's penalty in the final moments of the game saved Barcelona from defeat, as they drew 1-1 with Newcastle in the Champions League last 16, first leg match on Tuesday.

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The Magpies had taken the lead through Harvey Barnes' goal in the 86th minute, putting them on the verge of a memorable night at St. James' Park.

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However, Yamal showed great composure in scoring the penalty, awarded after Dani Olmo was tripped by Malick Thiaw deep into stoppage time, to rescue a draw for Barcelona.

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Barcelona, the Liga champions, still have work to do when they meet Newcastle again on March 18, but they will be relieved to have escaped with a draw after a sub-par performance under Hansi Flick.

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Newcastle's chances of making the quarter-finals for the first time were dealt a blow before the game when Anthony Gordon was forced to start on the bench due to illness, robbing them of a key threat.

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Gordon's 10 Champions League goals this season are bettered only by Kylian Mbappe, and his absence was felt as Newcastle applied early pressure without being able to capitalize on their chances.

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Eddie Howe had described the game as the biggest in the club's history, and the team's desire to make amends for their FA Cup exit to Manchester City and a disappointing Premier League season was evident in their performance.

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Howe made a bold choice by starting William Osula in place of club record signing Nick Woltemade and Yoane Wissa up front, and Osula's pace caused problems for Barca's high defensive line early on.

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Newcastle's best chance to break the deadlock before half-time came from a corner, which saw Joan Garcia spill a header from Sandro Tonali, only for Pau Cubarsi to make a goal-line clearance.

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The home side continued to press for a breakthrough in the second period, with Anthony Elanga missing a chance to pick out Barnes for a simple finish when his low cross was cut out by Garcia.

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It took nearly 70 minutes for Barcelona to create a clear sight of goal, when Robert Lewandowski prodded wide from Raphinha's cross, which proved to be his final act before being replaced by Marcus Rashford.

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Howe also turned to his bench in search of a winner, introducing Gordon among others, but the offside flag came to Barca's aid when Joelinton thought he had opened the scoring after Barnes struck the post.

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Barcelona's desire to simply see the game out at 0-0 was evident when Ronald Araujo tried to hold up play by rolling back on the field after going down injured, but Italian referee Marco Guida refused to let him back on immediately.

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Newcastle took full advantage of Araujo's absence as Barnes was left unmarked at the back post to convert Jacob Murphy's cross, but their fine work was undone by one mistake when Thiaw brought down Olmo inside the box.

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Yamal coolly sent Aaron Ramsdale the wrong way with the resulting penalty, leaving Newcastle needing a strong performance in the return leg at the Camp Nou to reach the last eight.