Barcelona and Newcastle United meet for a Champions League showdown at St James' Park on Thursday.
The pregame narrative: Barcelona won every major domestic trophy last season but bowed out of the UCL after a shocking last-minute defeat to Inter Milan. The Spanish giants are favoured to begin their redemption tour against a struggling Newcastle side.
Check out my Newcastle United vs. Barcelona predictions, featuring prop bets on Raphinha and Dani Olmo.
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Newcastle United vs. Barcelona predictions
Parlay: Over 2.5 goals | Raphinha to score or assist | Olmo over 0.5 shots on target (+320)
Over 2.5 goals (-215): Barcelona is more than capable of covering this line on its own.
Hansi Flick's side is coming off a 6-0 win in La Liga against Valencia and has scored three-plus goals in eight of its last nine games.
This is where Barcelona ranked among Champions League teams last year, per FotMob:
- 1st in goals per match (3.1)
- 2nd in SOT per match (7.0)
- 3rd in possession (61.9%)
- 3rd in xG (32.9)
Newcastle is just 1-2-1 through four Premier League fixtures, playing in a trio of snoozers and a 3-2 barnburner against Liverpool.
The hosts will probably want to make this a low-event match, but that's easier said than done against Barcelona.
Champions League betting markets
UCL SGP legs
Raphinha to score (-121): Barcelona is loaded with elite talent up front, and last year, Raphinha was the best of the bunch.
He set a Champions League record with 22 goal contributions (13 goals, nine assists), reaching that milestone in 14 matches.
The Brazilian forward will be the focal point of Barca's attack on Thursday with Lamine Yamal sidelined.
Yamal's absence is a big hit, but Raphinha still has all-world goalscorer Robert Lewandowski at his side.
The Polish striker has scored two goals in three La Liga matches this year.
Olmo over 0.5 shots on target (-108): At the time of writing, it's unclear if Olmo will start Thursday's game.
It would be a plus if he were on the field from the get-go, but the Spanish midfielder is used heavily as a super sub in matches where he doesn't start.
Olmo has played at least 45 minutes in three of four games for Barcelona this year, clearing this line three times.
He ranks in the 86th percentile for shot attempts per 90 minutes (3.08), compared to positional peers in men's Big 5 Leagues, UCL, and UEL over the last 365 days, per FBRef.
Newcastle United vs. Barcelona predictions made at 9:37 a.m. ET on 09/17/2025.
