Newcastle United vs Qarabağ

The second leg between Newcastle United and Qarabağ FK takes place at St James’ Park, with the English side holding a commanding advantage after a dominant first-leg performance. Newcastle produced a stunning 6-1 victory in Azerbaijan on Wednesday, putting themselves firmly in control of the UEFA Champions League knockout phase play-off and leaving Qarabağ with a monumental task if they are to overturn the deficit on Tyneside. That first meeting was historic for several reasons. Anthony Gordon delivered a sensational display, scoring four goals—all in the first half—to become only the second English player to achieve that feat in a single Champions League match after Harry Kane. Goals from Malick Thiaw and Jacob Murphy completed the rout, with Elvin Jafarguliyev grabbing a consolation for the Azerbaijani champions. The victory was Newcastle’s biggest ever in the Champions League and equalled their largest win in European competition overall, as well as marking the first time they had scored six goals in a UEFA match. Form strongly favours the hosts. Eddie Howe’s side have lost only one of their last eight Champions League matches (W5 D2), winning their last three home games in the competition without conceding. Newcastle have also lost the home leg in just two of their previous 31 European ties (W21 D8), demonstrating their reliability in front of their own supporters. Notably, the Magpies have never lost a European match by more than three goals, further emphasising how unlikely a dramatic turnaround would be. Anthony Gordon, Woltemade and Barnes are expected at the attacking end of Newcastle’s 4—3—3 formation. Malick Thiaw is suspended for this clash.

Qarabağ, meanwhile, are hoping to compete in the Champions League knockout stage for the first time and are already making history as the first Azerbaijani club to reach this phase. However, their record against English opposition is poor, with no wins in ten meetings (D1 L9), including a 0-6 defeat away to Liverpool earlier in the competition. They have also lost all five away matches against English clubs, scoring just once and conceding 19 goals. Despite the heavy first-leg defeat, Qarabağ can take confidence from their broader European pedigree, having won eight of their last ten two-legged ties. Still, overturning a five-goal deficit against a confident Newcastle side appears an enormous challenge. With Gordon in prolific form—now Newcastle’s all-time top scorer in the Champions League with ten goals this season—the Magpies will aim to finish the job professionally and continue what is already a landmark European campaign for the club. A 4—2—3—1 formation with Camilo Durán in attack is expected against Newcastle.