The China Mail - Barnes brace routs Man Utd as Newcastle rise to fourth place

Newcastle were without manager Eddie Howe, who was admitted to hospital on Friday after feeling unwell for several days.

But Barnes provided a welcome tonic for Howe as his second-half brace at St James' Park boosted Newcastle's bid to qualify for the Champions League.

With Howe's assistants Jason Tindall and Graeme Jones in charge of the League Cup winners, Sandro Tonali put Newcastle ahead before Alejandro Garnacho equalised late in the first half.

Barnes stole the spotlight after the interval, becoming the first Newcastle player to score twice in one league game against United since Alan Shearer in 2000.

Bruno Guimaraes punished a blunder from United keeper Altay Bayindir, who started in place of the dropped Andre Onana, to seal Newcastle's first four-goal haul against United since 2001.

In the race to reach the Champions League via a top five finish, Newcastle are just one point behind third-placed Nottingham Forest.

They have a game in hand on Forest, as well as fifth-placed Manchester City and sixth-placed Chelsea, who are two points adrift of the Magpies.

United have now gone four games without a win in all competitions, leaving them languishing in 14th place with just six games left to avoid their lowest finish since 1973-74, when they came 21st and were relegated.

They are already certain to suffer their worst points total in the Premier League era, with the previous low 58 in 2021-22.

Ruben Amorim made five changes with an eye on Lyon's visit to Old Trafford for the Europa League quarter-final, second leg next Thursday, but United were blown away with embarrassing ease.

- -United in disarray -

Bayindir had replaced Onana after the Cameroon keeper's latest error-strewn display in United's 2-2 draw at Lyon last Thursday.

But the 26-year-old, signed from Fenerbahce in 2023, endured a woeful first Premier League start.

Newcastle's opening goal arrived at the climax of a flowing move after United midfielder Manuel Ugarte gave the ball way in the 24th minute.

Kieran Trippier surged forward and found Alexander Isak, who astutely lifted his pass over the defence for Tonali to drive a clinical finish into the far corner from an acute angle 10 yards out.

It was the 19th time United had conceded the opening goal in a league game this season -- their joint-most in a single campaign in the competition.

With United out of sync once again, Tonali almost doubled the lead as the Italy midfielder curled just wide from distance.

Bayindir looked nervous when he punched Tino Livramento's cross straight to Isak, but he redeemed himself with a good save from the Swede's volley.

United equalised completely against the run of play in the 37th minute.

Diogo Dalot was the catalyst with a buccaneering burst that carried him to the edge of the Newcastle area, where he slipped a precise pass to Garnacho and the Argentine winger fired past Nick Pope.

Having scored for just the second time in 2025, Garnacho went close to another when Pope palmed away his blast on the stroke of half-time.

But Newcastle regained the lead four minutes after half-time as United's leaky defence was breached again.

Livramento's low cross was alertly kept in by Murphy beyond the far post and his pass into the six-yard box found Barnes unmarked for a clinical finish.

Zirkzee limped off to add to United's woes after crumpling to the turf with an apparent hamstring injury.

United were in disarray and Barnes delivered the knockout blow in the 64th minute, dispossessing Noussair Mazraoui and racing clear to drill a fierce strike past Bayindir.

In the 77th minute, Bayindir's wayward pass went straight to Joelinton, who nodded the ball onto Guimaraes for a composed finish that rubbed salt into United's gaping wounds.

C.Smith--ThChM