The staggering Newcastle United stat that suggests Barcelona may be the better draw on Friday
Newcastle United will have learned their Champions League fate by this time tomorrow, whether that would be facing Barcelona or Chelsea in the last 16 of the competition.
Both possibilities come with their pros and cons. Playing Chelsea three times in a week doesn't sound too appealing, but it will reduce travel time for the lads.
However, playing another Premier League side in European competition is hardly a glamorous tie, and there would be something far more prestigious should we beat Barcelona, even if that feels like it may be the more difficult of the two options.
That being said, a local journalist has unearthed a brilliant statistic that may sway fans into hoping to draw the Spanish giants on Friday morning.
Newcastle have failed to win a European game against teams from just one country so far
Ben Spratt has posted on X this morning that Newcastle have faced teams from 28 different countries in European competitions and beat teams from 27 of those.
"Newcastle have played European matches against teams from 28 different nations, beating teams from 27. The exception is against English teams, having drawn both matches with Southampton in the 1969-70 Fairs Cup but gone through on away goals"
It's encouraging that we also haven't lost to an English side in Europe, but it's such a strange stat that we had to draw attention to it.
Bring on Barcelona!
Spratt went on to deliver more encouraging stats for Newcastle to cover either eventuality on Friday, showing how Newcastle's aggregate score against Chelsea under Eddie Howe is positive, as is Newcastle's record against Spanish sides in Europe.
Neither side is going to be easy to beat, there's no getting away from that fact. We probably fancy ourselves more against Chelsea, but it would mean a lot more to get beyond Barcelona.
I think I'm leaning towards a draw against Barcelona. We owe them one after the opening game of the competition.
