Match Updates
16 min: Newcastle 0-0 Barcelona Joan Garcia makes an excellent save, diving to his right to fingertip Elanga’s shot around the post. Although the flag was raised against Elanga, he appeared onside, so the goal might have stood had he scored.
11 min: Atletico 1-0 Tottenham A misstep by Antonin Kinsky, a literal slip rather than a mistake, occurred at an unfortunate moment for Spurs.
14 min: Newcastle 0-0 Barcelona Hugh Collins reflects on Kari Tulinius’s email, pondering a counterfactual scenario: what would the Premier League table and, by extension, the football world look like if Spurs, Forest, and Man U had retained their managers from last season? He humorously describes this as the worst Black Mirror episode ever.
GOAL! Atalanta 0-1 Bayern Munich (Stanisic 12)
One of the competition favourites takes the lead in Bergamo through Josip Stanisic.
GOAL! Atletico 1-0 Tottenham (Llorente 6)
Spurs have a difficult start. Antonin Kinsky, making his debut tonight, slips while attempting a pass, losing possession to Julian Alvarez near the edge of the area. Alvarez then squares the ball to Marcos Llorente, who finishes expertly into the corner.
8 min: Newcastle 0-0 Barcelona Newcastle controls the tempo and seem to need a goal before Barcelona settle into their rhythm. The absence of Bruno Guimaraes alongside Tonali is notable.
4 min: Atleti 0-0 Spurs Sam writes on behalf of Tottenham fans, appreciating that neither Vicario nor Dragusin are starting, which is a positive development.
Djed Spence receives a booking for a foul on Antoine Griezmann.
"Yesterday I was in a café and at the next table two men were conversing in a language I didn’t understand; Lithuanian or Latvian, I think," begins Kári Tulinius. "But I did grasp that they were discussing a roll call of Spurs greats in reverse chronological order, from Son Heung-Min to Luka Modrić. It made me realise that some absolutely world class players have worn the Lilywhite shirt, and that not a single one of them was adequately replaced. They’ve been bad at team-building for a long time, despite some stellar recruitment at times. That Ange got them a European trophy last year is astonishing."
4 min: Newcastle 0-0 Barcelona A second corner leads to a header from Tonali that slips through keeper Joan Garcia but is cleared by a defender behind him.
Atletico v Spurs kicked off a few minutes late for reasons not yet disclosed.
3 min: Newcastle 0-0 Barcelona Lamine Yamal attempts a run from deep within his half but is stopped fairly by Joelinton. Newcastle starts strongly and has already earned a couple of corners.
Match report: Galatasaray 1-0 Liverpool
Liverpool faces a challenging first leg in their last-16 tie, having been second best for most of the match so far. However, the situation remains salvageable.
St James’ Park hosts a vibrant atmosphere with "Local Hero" playing around the stadium, promising an exciting encounter.
"Anthony Gordon is reportedly a little under the weather," writes Chris Paraskevas, "which these days is basically code for ‘imminently signing for Liverpool’ like The Other Bloke did.
"It seems a bit odd not to risk Gordon here and even more pointedly, to have both big money strikers on the bench. It speaks to the issues Eddie Howe has been plagued with and occasionally brought upon himself this season.
"I’m not going to say that Wisse and Woltemade are now confirmed as Panic Buys, but I know the feeling of overspending in the market: I have 1kg of bacon to cook for my breakfast this morning (...ask Scott Murray for clarification).
"Anyway this should be a humdinger of a match / I’ll be screaming obsenities at the local cockatoos by the end."
The two sentiments are not mutually exclusive.
A reminder: the winner of Newcastle or Barcelona will face the victor of Atletico or Spurs in the quarter-finals. The winner of Atalanta v Bayern will meet either Real Madrid or Manchester City.
Full time: Galatasaray 1-0 Liverpool
Mario Lemina’s early goal secured a first-leg victory for Galatasaray in Turkey. Scott Murray observed the match.
Galatasaray maintains a 1-0 lead over Liverpool in Turkey. Follow the last five minutes plus stoppage time with Scott Murray.
Atalanta v Bayern Munich team news
Harry Kane is only fit enough for a place on the bench due to a calf injury, so Nicolas Jackson starts upfront for Bayern.
Atalanta (4-2-3-1): Carnesecchi; Zappacosta, Hien, Kolasinac, Bernasconi; De Roon, Pasalic; Sulemana, Krstovic, Zalewski; Scamacca.
Subs: Rossi, Sportiello, Kossounou, Bakker, Musah, Samardzic, Bellanova, Djimsiti, Vavassori, Ahanor, Cassa.
Bayern Munich (4-2-3-1): Urbig; Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanisic; Kimmich, Pavlovic; Olise, Gnabry, Diaz; Jackson.
Subs: Ulreich, Prescott, Kim, Goretzka, Kane, Musiala, Davies, Bischof, Guerreiro, Karl.
Newcastle v Barcelona team news
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe makes an interesting decision by selecting Will Osula upfront over Nick Woltemade, Yoane Wissa, and Anthony Gordon, all of whom are on the bench. Three changes are made from the side that lost to Manchester City in the FA Cup: Joelinton, Jacob Ramsey, and Dan Burn replace Woltemade, Joe Willock, and Sven Botman.
Marcus Rashford, who scored twice when Barcelona won at St James’ Park in the league phase, starts on the bench.
Newcastle (4-3-3): Ramsdale; Trippier, Thiaw, Burn, Hall; Ramsey, Tonali, Joelinton; Elanga, Osula, Barnes.
Subs: Ruddy, Harris, Botman, Livramento, Jacob Murphy, Willock, Alex Murphy, Neave, Pope, Wissa, Woltemade, Gordon.
Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Joan Garcia; Joao Cancelo, Araujo, Cubarsi, Gerard; Gonzalez, Bernal; Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Raphinha; Lewandowski.
Subs: Kochen, Gavi, Rashford, Bardghji, Cortes, Espart, Marques, Szczesny, Casado, Eric Garcia, Torres, Olmo.
Atletico Madrid v Spurs team news
Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is dropped, with Antonin Kinsky replacing him. Cristian Romero returns to defence after a domestic suspension. Djed Spence and Richarlison are included in the lineup for Joao Palhinha, Souza, and Dominic Solanke.
Julian Alvarez and Antoine Griezmann return for Atletico after missing the 3-2 win over Real Sociedad at the weekend.
Atletico Madrid (4-4-2): Oblak; Pubill, Le Normand, Hancko, Ruggeri; Simeone, Llorente, Johnny, Lookman; Alvarez, Griezmann.
Subs: Musso, Gimenez, Koke, Barrios, Sorloth, Baena, Almada, Lenglet, Molina, Vargas, Gonzalez, Diaz.
Tottenham Hotspur (3-4-3): Kinsky; Romero, Danso, Van de Ven; Porro, Sarr, Gray, Spence; Muani, Richarlison, Tel.
Subs: Vicario, Austin, Dragusin, Joao Palhinha, Simons, Solanke, Gallagher, Olusesi, Rowswell.
Referee: Serdar Gozubuyuk (Netherlands)
Newcastle vs Barcelona Preview
Newcastle manager Eddie Howe described the match as a significant occasion:
"Barcelona is the biggest game in this club’s history. It’s massive."Although Newcastle have never advanced this far in Europe’s premier competition, their history includes numerous cup finals and title challenges, making the statement somewhat debatable. Barcelona, having worked hard for a draw in the league phase in September, are approaching their return to Tyneside with seriousness.
Atletico Madrid vs Spurs Preview
Tottenham’s interim head coach, Igor Tudor, termed the Champions League last-16 first leg at Atletico Madrid a "beautiful game," but acknowledged it is not the club’s priority at present.
Spurs finished fourth in the league phase, securing direct qualification for the last 16 and a return to the stadium where they played a final less than seven years ago. However, a run of 11 matches without a win has left them just one point above the Premier League relegation zone, placing Tudor under pressure shortly after his appointment. He stated:
"Our first aim is the Premier League, this needs to be said publicly."
Galatasaray vs Liverpool Update
Galatasaray leads Liverpool 1-0 in the first leg. Scott Murray provides ongoing coverage.
Competition Context
After eight months and 252 games, the competition reaches a critical knockout stage featuring three repeat fixtures from the league phase. UEFA aims to maximize excitement and profitability by scheduling these matches, including Galatasaray vs Liverpool, Kieran Trippier vs Lamine Yamal, and Pep Guardiola facing a former Anfield stalwart now at Real Madrid. This repetition may feel like Groundhog Day to younger audiences, but UEFA hopes short attention spans will mitigate this.
For two decades, debates have persisted regarding whether La Liga or the Premier League is the superior league globally. Spanish and English clubs have dominated European and world football during this period, with arguments supporting both sides.
Since the introduction of the Swiss model, eight English teams have qualified automatically for the knockout stage compared to Spain’s three, including five this season. Premier League teams have won more Champions League titles (3-2) since the 2018-19 season, though historically Spain has dominated, with Real Madrid and Barcelona winning half of the last 20 titles, and English teams securing five.
This debate remains open to interpretation, with some even citing the UEFA coefficient, where Italy ranks second ahead of Spain. The last 16 of this season’s Champions League will provide further evidence, featuring three Anglo-Spanish ties, two of which begin tonight.
Newcastle hosts Barcelona in a repeat of Tino Asprilla’s memorable 1997 night. Tottenham, ranked fourth-best in Europe but only 16th in England, visits Atletico Madrid. Attention will also be on Atalanta vs Bayern Munich.
In case of any confusion, these are tonight’s fixtures.
