Newcastle defeated Qarabag 3-2, winning 9-3 on aggregate and sealing their place in the last 16 of the Champions League for the first time.
Toon is scheduled to face either Chelsea or Barcelona in the last 16, with a draw to be held on Friday.
The heavy lifting was done in Baku and Newcastle’s attacking swagger almost ended the game with a 6-1 victory, but it was a test of control and composure.
The intent was clear from the first whistle, with Sandro Tonali and Joelinton both scoring within six minutes and there was no sign of complacency.
When Camilo Duran scored and the home fans erupted in applause, Qarabag showed the flash in their forward area that had brought them to this stage.
But Newcastle were unable to give Qarabag any momentum and Sven Botman headed home just two minutes later.
Newcastle and other Premier League teams move a step closer to finding their Champions League last-16 opponents
Ervin Kafarguliev fired a shot off the rebound and Marko Janković’s penalty was saved by Aaron Ramsdale to close the gap.
In the end, the Magpies finished with a total of 9 wins and 3 losses.
In the process, the Premier League will ensure six internationals feature in the next round, with Eddie Howe’s side joining Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham on the big stage. The final 16 players await Coach Howe’s team. And on the evidence from these two games, Newcastle are not yet out of the Champions League.
Tonali and Howe slam Newcastle’s second half against Qarabag
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Eddie Howe has reacted to his side Newcastle’s progress to the last 16 of the Champions League, saying he is desperate to improve their form in the Premier League.
Newcastle midfielder Sandro Tonali and manager Eddie Howe admitted they were disappointed with the Magpies’ second-half performance.
Tonali told Amazon Prime: “I’m not very happy with the second half because we only play for the result.”
“These fans have the right to give 100 percent in every game, so we have to do more.
“We can perform more than 100 percent. We need to push every moment of the game.
“First of all, it was about not conceding goals. We conceded the first goal in the first 10 minutes of the second half. I think it was a stupid goal. Every time we concede, we are not happy. But we are happy because we are moving forward in the Champions League. We have been training a lot for this.”
Howe echoed Tonali’s frustration, saying: “I agree with Sandro’s assessment. At 20 points, we probably came off the pedal. We didn’t intend to do that, but it was a natural reaction. In the second half it was a bit end-to-end. It was really disappointing for us. One, we used too much energy and two, we didn’t sustain enough pressure on the opponent’s goal.”
“There was no rest for us. The other clubs who didn’t go to the play-offs had a week of free time. We played Manchester City and they had a week of free time. They’re the worst team you want to play against.”
“Our performance today was a little bit tiring throughout the game, especially in the second half. But I think we also benefited from the game. It’s a double-edged sword.”
