Marcus Rashford made a dream start to life at Barcelona, scoring twice to secure a 2-1 victory over Newcastle United in a raucous Champions League night at St James’ Park.
The Manchester United loanee struck with a header just before the hour and then unleashed a thunderous effort from the edge of the box to double the visitors’ lead. Anthony Gordon’s late goal set up a tense finish, but Barcelona held on to take three points in their opening group match.
Newcastle began brightly, with Anthony Elanga twice breaking free down the right flank. His low cross in the opening minutes found Gordon in front of goal, but the forward barely made contact. Elanga later created another clear chance for Harvey Barnes, whose strike was parried by Joan García.
Barcelona, missing teenage star Lamine Yamal through injury, dominated possession but struggled for precision. Of their nine first-half attempts, only one tested Nick Pope in the Newcastle goal. The home side nearly broke the deadlock early in the second half when Joelinton’s header drifted wide.
Moments later, Rashford tilted the balance. Jules Koundé delivered a curling cross from the left and Rashford outmuscled Fabian Schär to guide a header past Pope. Newcastle introduced Nick Woltemade to add fresh impetus, but Rashford’s second goal soon silenced the crowd. Collecting the ball outside the penalty area, he escaped Sandro Tonali’s challenge and unleashed a fierce shot that crashed in off the crossbar.
St James’ Park roared to life again in the final minutes when Gordon steered in Jacob Murphy’s cross to cut the deficit. Newcastle pressed for an equaliser, with Tonali trying his luck from distance, but García was well positioned to save.
