NEWCASTLE, England: Barcelona's Lamine Yamal struck from the penalty spot with the final kick of the game to salvage a 1-1 draw with Newcastle United in the first leg of their Champions League last 16 tie on Tuesday, cancelling out a late strike from Harvey Barnes.
Newcastle appeared set to take a slender advantage into the second leg after Barnes scored in the 86th minute when he volleyed home Jacob Murphy's cross.
But elation for the home fans turned to heartbreak when Malick Thiaw brought Dani Olmo down in the box in the fourth minute of stoppage time. The 18-year-old Yamal, who had been quiet all night, fired the penalty into the bottom corner as goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale dove the wrong way.
"Really tough," Newcastle boss Eddie Howe told TNT Sports. "I thought we were outstanding, a really good performance against a very good team. We kept the intensity up, which is very difficult to do against them for so long in the game.
"The moment at the end obviously takes that in a negative light ... I don't want that to override the 93 minutes beforehand where we played so well."
Newcastle's Joelinton thought he had scored earlier in the second half when he smashed home the rebound of Barnes' shot off the post, but the linesman quickly raised his flag for offside.
The second leg is at Barcelona on March 18.
Newcastle, who were beaten 2-1 by their Spanish opponents at home in the first league-phase game this season, were forced to go through the knockout phase playoffs, while Barcelona qualified directly for the last 16.
However, Newcastle were the better team on Tuesday in what Howe had earlier said would be his side's most important game at St James' Park in recent memory.
They regularly troubled the visitors with the speed up front of Barnes, Anthony Elanga and William Osula, but squandered several brilliant chances. One came from an Elanga cross that was just beyond the outstretched leg of Osula.
Barcelona rarely got past Newcastle's back four with Robert Lewandowski narrowly missing the visitors' best chance of the night when he prodded a cross from Raphinha just wide of the far post in the second half.
However, they had Yamal to thank in the sixth minute of stoppage time for making sure they play the second leg at home on level terms.
"For sure, I think if you went in our changing room at the end of the game, you would have thought that we'd lost by how quiet it was," Newcastle defender Lewis Hall said.
Asked if Newcastle deserved the victory, Barcelona boss Hansi Flick said: "At the end, maybe yes, but we take this one for us, a very important result, because I think we didn't play so well with a ball, but against the ball, we defend together, and we stay together."
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