Newcastle 3 – 2 Qarabağ | History Made at St. James’ Park!
The Magpies have officially punched their ticket to the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 for the first time in the club’s history! While the heavy lifting was done in the first leg, Newcastle United finished the job at a rainy St. James’ Park last night, securing a 3-2 victory and a massive 9-3 aggregate win over Qarabağ.
Despite some second-half defensive wobbles, Eddie Howe’s side proved why they are currently the highest-scoring team in this year’s competition.
Match Highlights
Newcastle wasted no time asserting their dominance, effectively ending any lingering hopes of a Qarabağ “miracle” within the first ten minutes.
Blitz Start: Just four minutes in, Sandro Tonali pounced on a rebound after a Dan Burn effort was saved to make it 1-0.
The Record Breaker: Only 80 seconds later, Joelinton connected with a venomous volley from a Harvey Barnes cross. This goal set a new Champions League record for the most goals scored by a team in a single knockout tie.
The Response: Qarabağ showed grit in the second half. Camilo Duran outpaced the defense to pull one back in the 50th minute.
Botman’s Bullet: Sven Botman restored the two-goal cushion just two minutes later, powering home a header from a pinpoint Kieran Trippier corner.
Late Drama: A Dan Burn handball gave the visitors a penalty. While Aaron Ramsdale made a brilliant save against Marko Jankovic, Elvin Jafarguliyev was fastest to the rebound to close out the scoring at 3-2.
Tactical Summary
With a five-goal cushion from the first leg, Eddie Howe chose to rotate his squad, resting stars like Anthony Gordon and giving minutes to youth prospect Alex Murphy. While the rotation led to a slightly disjointed second half—something Tonali described as “stupid” in his post-match interview—the tactical objective was clearly met.
What’s Next?
The Geordie faithful can now look forward to the “sharp end” of the tournament.
The Big Draw: Newcastle will find out their Round of 16 opponent this Friday. Possible matchups include European giants Barcelona or a massive all-English clash against Chelsea.
Domestic Duty: The team travels to face Wolves this weekend as they look to carry this European momentum back into the Premier League top-four race.
”To get to the knockout stages was our target at the start of the season. We felt we could achieve it with these players, and now we are here.” — Eddie Howe
