Madrid, March 19 (IANS) FC Barcelona stormed into the Champions League quarterfinals after routing Newcastle United 7-2 at Camp Nou for an 8-3 aggregate victory.

After last week’s 1-1 draw in Newcastle left the tie finely poised, Barcelona blew it open with a ruthless second-half display. Fermin Lopez, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha led the way as the Spanish side overwhelmed Newcastle after the break.

The first half had been a breathless affair in front of 60,000 fans, with five goals and chances at both ends, reports Xinhua.

Raphinha gave Barcelona the lead in the sixth minute after being played through by Fermin Lopez, but Newcastle responded quickly when Anthony Elanga finished from an angle after a diagonal pass from left-back Lewis Hall.

Barcelona restored its advantage in the 18th minute, Marc Bernal poking home from close range after Gerard Martin knocked down a free kick to expose slack Newcastle marking.

Newcastle hit back again as Elanga grabbed his second of the night, turning in after Harvey Barnes’ cross took a slight deflection and fell kindly for a simple finish.

The game continued at a furious pace. Dan Burn produced a vital block to deny Lewandowski, while Lamine Yamal missed from close range when he looked certain to score.

Yamal made up for that miss in first-half stoppage time, converting a penalty after Kieran Trippier pulled back Raphinha.

If the opening period had been evenly contested, the second half belonged entirely to Barcelona.

Fermin Lopez made it 4-2 after Lewandowski’s flick sent him clear on goal. Lewandowski then added a fifth with a header from Raphinha’s corner while Newcastle was briefly down to 10 men after Sandro Tonali went off with a thigh injury.

Lewandowski struck again on the hour mark, finishing from a fine pass by Yamal, before Raphinha completed the scoring after Joe Willock’s costly error.

With the result beyond doubt, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick was able to make changes and rest key players ahead of the weekend.

–IANS

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