Four Barcelona stars on yellow card alert ahead of Newcastle clash | OneFootball

FC Barcelona will head into their decisive Champions League clash against Newcastle United knowing that qualification is not the only thing at stake.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Hansi Flick has four players walking a suspension tightrope ahead of the second leg. Lamine Yamal, Fermin Lopez, Gerard Martin, and Marc Casado are all one booking away from missing the first leg of the quarter-finals, should Barcelona get past Newcastle United.

That makes squad management especially delicate for Flick. Barcelona already have enough problems to deal with because of injuries, with Alejandro Balde, Jules Kounde, Frenkie de Jong, and Andreas Christensen all unavailable. On top of that, the German coach must now also factor in the disciplinary risk hanging over several important players.

Among those names, the concern is particularly notable because some of them are expected to play a major role. Lamine Yamal, Fermin Lopez, and Gerard Martin all have strong chances of starting against Newcastle, while Marc Casado is more likely to begin on the bench. Any booking for one of the four would instantly rule them out of a potential quarter-final first leg.

There is also a second layer to the issue. Dani Olmo and Joao Cancelo have each picked up one yellow card in this season’s Champions League, meaning another booking against Newcastle would leave them on the brink of suspension too.

That matters even more because the cards will not be wiped anytime soon. Yellow cards in the Champions League are only cleared from the semi-final stage, so Barcelona’s players at risk still have several games to navigate carefully if they want to avoid bans.

For Barcelona, then, this is not just about beating Newcastle. It is also about coming through the night without losing key players for the next round.