Anthony Gordon equals Champions League history in Newcastle United rout

Champions League rout 

Newcastle United put Qarabag to the sword in a remarkable first-half in their Champions League play-off first-leg clash. The Azerbaijanian minnows defied the odds to secure a top 25 place in the league phase, achieving memorable wins over Frankfurt and Benfica, plus a commendable draw against Chelsea. Qarabag comfortably possess the least valuable squad left in the competition at €26.6m and the €636m gap to Newcastle showed as Eddie Howe’s side put on a clinic.

The Magpies raced to a 5-0 lead at the interval to put the tie to bed and they became only the second team in the history of Champions League knockouts to establish a five goal lead by half-time – Bayern Munich also led Porto 5-0 in the quarter-finals in 2015. But the story of the first-half was unquestionably Anthony Gordon.

Anthony equals Champions League history

Gordon has endured an indifferent season for Newcastle but he continued his outstanding form in the Champions League by scoring four goals in the opening 45 minutes. In doing so, the England international became only the second player in the history of the competition to score four goals in the first half – Luiz Adriano also achieved the feat against Bate Borisov in October 2024.

Moreover, Gordon became the first ever Newcastle player to score four goals in a European tie and it wasn’t the only record for 24-year-old. Gordon became Newcastle’s record appearance holder in the Champions League and their record scorer in the competition with his tenth goal of the campaign, eclipsing Alan Shearer. Interestingly, there’s a stark contrast between Gordon’s attacking output in the Champions League and Premier League this season.