Newcastle vs Barcelona Predictions

• Newcastle have lost three of their last five matches.
• Barcelona are on a four-game winning streak.
• Lamine Yamal has scored nine goals in his last 11 appearances.

Magpies struggle to take flight

After eliminating Newcastle from the League Cup in February, Manchester City sent Newcastle packing from another cup competition on Saturday, and now it may be Barcelona’s turn to clip the Magpies’ wings, starting with a first-leg tie at St James’ Park on Tuesday.

The 3-1 loss suffered by Eddie Howe’s side was their third defeat in their last five games, and two of these losses have come in front of their own fans.

Yamal’s purple patch to continue at St James’ Park

Barcelona head to the north east with a four-point cushion at the top of the La Liga table following their win at Athletic Bilbao on Saturday.

That extended their winning streak to four matches, and Marcus Rashford fired the Blaugrana to a 2-1 win over Newcastle back in September.

This helped them to a fifth-place finish in the Champions League league phase and, given Newcastle’s recent struggles, backing Barcelona to get a first-leg win appeals.

Newcastle have scored in 12 successive matches, though, so a repeat of September’s 2-1 scoreline looks a good value offering against a side that have scored 11 goals in their last four matches.

Barca starlet Lamine Yamal could be a contributor to the scoresheet, too. The 18-year-old scored the winner against Athletic Bilbao at the weekend and has nine goals in his last 11 appearances.