Former Chelsea striker Chris Sutton gave a brutal assessment of Newcastle United midfielder Jacob Ramsey’s role in Barcelona’s seventh goal in a 7-2 mauling last night. The Magpies suffered one of their worst-ever defeats at Camp Nou.
Anthony Elanga twice equalised in a pulsating first half that looked likely to end 2-2. That was until Kieran Trippier brought Raphinha down in the box and Lamine Yamal netted from the penalty spot.
Eddie Howe admitted after the game that the penalty had a psychological effect on his players. That might explain the calamitous defending that Barca capitalised on, scoring four second-half goals.
‘Hell of a beating’ – Sutton
The seventh goal came in the 72nd minute when Ramsey slipped and played the ball straight to Raphinha. The former Leeds United winger made him pay, netting his second of the night to seal an 8-3 win on aggregate.
Sutton was stunned by the manner of Newcastle’s defeat and the particularly defensive mistakes. He touched on Ramsey’s slip-up when speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live:
“It’s dreadful from Ramsey, plays a blind pass back to goal and just pops it into Raphina’s path. The boys from Barcelona are giving Newcastle one hell of a beating. This is going to be a long 17/18 minutes for Eddie Howe’s side.”
Ramsey wasn’t the only one who endured a torrid night at Camp Nou as Malick Thiaw put in a poor performance. The German looked vulnerable at the back and this didn’t go unnoticed by fans.
All focus is now on the Premier League and ending a sorry season on a high. The Tyneside giants host Sunderland in the Tyne-Wear derby on Sunday (March 22nd).
‘Game of errors’ – Elanga
One of the few positives Newcastle can take from the game is Elanga’s display. The Swedish attacker looked up for the fight and took his two goals extremely well.
Elanga spoke after the heavy defeat to Barca and suggested the Magpies were their own worst enemy. He told TNT Sports:
“Today it was the errors that cost us really. The support we had from the fans was amazing. Proud of the lads of how far we’ve come in the competition. A shame we went out the way we did but we can reflect on our errors and work on them for Sunday.”
Newcastle were well and truly in the game in the first half, but the second half saw them fall apart. Howe will have to pick his troops up following a devastating loss that has ended the Champions League dream.
