Eddie Howe guided Newcastle into the last 16 of the Champions League for the first time as they sealed their passage from the play-offs with an entertaining 3-2 home victory over Qarabag. The tie was effectively over before a ball was kicked at St James’ Park after last week’s 6-1 first leg win in Baku, and it certainly was within six minutes of kick-off thanks to quickfire goals from Sandro Tonali and Joelinton. Camilo Duran and Elvin Jafarguliyev scored either side of Sven Botman’s second-half header to make thinks interesting, but ultimately the Magpies progressed 9-3 on aggregate. In the process, they ensured that the Premier League will have six representatives in the next round, with Howe’s men joining Arsenal, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham on the big stage. Either the Blues or Barcelona will be heading for Tyneside next month before Newcastle, who handed a first senior start to 21-year-old Ireland defender Alex Murphy, travel to south-west London or Catalonia with a place in the quarter-final at stake.

Source: Irish Independent February 25, 2026 01:03 UTC