VIDEO: Man Utd skipper Bruno Fernandes left STUNNED as on-loan Marcus Rashford scores screamer against Newcastle in Champions League to complete Barcelona brace

Newcastle, buoyed by their home crowd, refused to be bullied and matched Barcelona stride for stride. Then came Rashford’s moment. A bullet header finally broke the deadlock, leaving Nick Pope helpless as the ball crashed into the net. What followed was something straight out of Rashford’s personal highlight reel. Collecting the ball outside the area, he skipped past Sandro Tonali with ease before launching a swirling thunderbolt that screamed into the top corner.

Back in Manchester, Rashford’s old dressing-room allies couldn’t hide their admiration. Fernandes posted Rashford’s long-range screamer alongside a trio of emojis: two mind-blown and a stunned face wedged between them. No analysis, no captions; just disbelief at the level his teammate had reached in Spain. Whereas, Jadon Sancho posted the clip of Rashford’s opener on his Instagram story with a fire emoji and a salute. When the second rocket hit the net, Sancho doubled down with more emojis.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the Catalan giants, however. Newcastle refused to bow down without a fight, and Anthony Gordon’s stoppage-time strike set up a tense finish. But Barca held firm, clinging to their lead and walking away with a hard-fought win.

Hansi Flick will hope this is just the beginning. With Rashford firing on all cylinders, Barcelona look a different beast. Attention now turns back to La Liga, where Barca face Getafe this Sunday. If Rashford can carry over his European fireworks, Spanish defences should beware, because the Manchester man is finding his best self in Catalonia.