Chelsea and Newcastle should be ‘banned from the Champions League‘, according to talkSPORT pundit and former Premier League striker Gabriel Agbonlahor. Both Chelsea and Newcastle were on the receiving end of thumpings in the second legs of their European ties this week.
Newcastle went into their second leg against Barcelona level on aggregate, having held the La Liga giants to a 1-1 draw at St. James’ Park. And despite equalising twice throughout a hectic first half, Eddie Howe’s side collapsed in the second half, losing the match 7-2 on the night and 8-3 on aggregate.
Things were a little less dignified for Chelsea though, who, despite a spell in the first half of their clash with Paris Saint-Germain, were well beaten by the reigning champions. Having collapsed late on in the first leg, Chelsea’s hopes of an unlikely comeback were extinguished early doors on Tuesday, when the Ligue 1 outfit raced to a two-goal lead.
After adding a third in the second leg, the full-time score read 3-0 on the night and 8-2 on aggregate, with plenty of criticism having been thrown Chelsea’s way. So much so, Agbonlahor, a former Aston Villa star, has called for the English teams who were handed a pasting to be banned from the competition.
Writing on X, Agbonlahor wrote: “Chelsea and Newcastle deserve a years ban from the champions league. Truly embarrassing the premier league! Get Villa back in we gave psg one hell of a game!!!”
Chelsea and Newcastle weren’t the only English sides to end up on the losing side, with Manchester City also crashing out after their latest loss to Real Madrid. Pep Guardiola’s side had started fast at the Etihad Stadium, with the 2023 champions looking to overturn a 3-0 deficit from the first leg.
Arsenal had no such problems in their last-16 tie, as the Gunners netted three times without reply in the second leg of their clash with Bayer Leverkusen to book a spot in the quarter-finals. Their reward for the win over the Bundesliga outfit is a last-eight tie against Sporting, a team they beat 5-1 in the league phase of last season’s competition.