Newcastle United were mere moments away from another famous win at St James' Park in the Champions League on Tuesday night.
Unfortunately, Eddie Howe's determined Magpies couldn't hold on to their precious one-goal lead against the might of Barcelona, as the clock ticked over into added-on time.
Newcastle
A rash Malik Thiaw challenge on Dani Olmo would allow Lamine Yamal to equalise from the penalty spot, which broke Toon hearts everywhere, and spared Barca's blushes.
There were still so many positive performances for Newcastle to hold onto, even if a legendary victory ended up evading them, as they now go about toppling the La Liga giants on their own turf in the second leg.
Newcastle's best performers vs Barcelona
Howe rightly hailed his side's impressive display as "near enough perfect" as Hansi Flick's visitors struggled to get going for the majority of the contest on Tyneside.
Yamal would end up scoring the devastating equaliser, but other than that key moment from the penalty spot, the Ballon d'Or contender was kept under wraps by Lewis Hall expertly, as the former Chelsea defender continues to shine brightly in the Newcastle first-team spotlight.
Chelsea likely wish they could turn back time now to persuade Hall not to leave Stamford Bridge. His outstanding performance, which included him creating five big chances and winning six duels led to wild calls that he is "the best left-back" in the entire Premier League by analyst Raj Chohan.
Moreover, Harvey Barnes continued his red-hot Champions League form against Barca, as another strike in this season's illustrious competition fell into his lap.
The blistering effort that got the better of Joan Garcia late into the match was Barnes' sixth Champions League goal this campaign from just eight starts, as he now dreams of another memorable effort coming his way at the Camp Nou.
Overall, Newcastle's tenacity and energy throughout showcased a side that had no fear in their bodies, even as one of Europe's top clubs travelled to St James' Park.
Harvey Barnes
In particular, Howe would have been over the moon with the efforts of a player who looks like he could be Newcastle's new Elliot Anderson.
Newcastle's new Anderson
Much like Chelsea must long for a time machine to reverse their Hall error, Newcastle surely have moments where they wish they hadn't given up Anderson so prematurely to Nottingham Forest.
elliot-anderson-newcastle-united-match-opinion-chelsea-premier-league
At the end of the day, the sale of the Forest midfielder helped Newcastle to satisfy PSR rules, but the well-oiled star is now worth way above the £35m the Magpies originally got for the sale, with talk centring on Anderson's valuation in 2026 hitting a reported fee of a staggering £100m.
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Winning a crazy 8.2 duels per Premier League clash this season, which is more than Bruno Guimaraes has averaged as Newcastle's constant midfield heartbeat, it's absurd to think what the Toon's midfield package would look like today if the sprightly 23-year-old had stuck around.
Instead of getting bogged down by their regrets, Newcastle could have a new Anderson-like figure in their ranks in Jacob Ramsey, who put in a stunning performance for Howe and Co from the middle of the park on what was only his third Champions League start of the campaign.
Ramsey's standout numbers
Stat
Minutes played
Touches
Accurate passes
Successful dribbles
Ball carries
Tackles won
Total duels won
Against the likes of Pedri and Fermin Lopez, Ramsey looked every bit a big-money player, much like Anderson, as the dynamic number 41 constantly pushed the hosts up the field with 11 courageous carries of the ball.
Additionally, the former Aston Villa prodigy would go on to achieve a 90% pass accuracy, as he never looked under pressure on the ball. To add context, the aforementioned Pedri could only average a lower 82% pass accuracy, as Ramsey rubbed shoulders with some elite players very competently.
Jacob-Ramsey
Displaying plenty of grit and fight, too, which is what Anderson has become known for at the City Ground, winning a combined ten tackles and duels for his side's spirited cause, it's clear that Newcastle might well have struck upon a diamond in the rough by sealing a deal for the Birmingham-born talent from Villa.
Newcastle must gift Ramsey more game time, though, so they don't fall victim to a situation like Anderson's, where he was itching for minutes away from St James' Park.
J. Ramsey
Surely off the back of this standout display, the first team minutes will come easily to him, as the 24-year-old now looks to kick on Tyneside, after such an accomplished showing on a daunting stage.
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