Five things we learned from Newcastle's Champions League second leg win
Sandro Tonali speaks to the media following the Champions League win over Qarabag
View Image
Newcastle United's passage to the last 16 of the Champions League was completed after a 3-2 win at St James' Park against a brave and spirited Qarabag outfit who refused to lie down despite the gulf in class between the two sides.
United were always likely to progress after the 6-1 win in the first leg and when they raced into a 2-0 lead thanks to early goals from Sandro Tonali and Joelinton, a rout looked on the cards. Qarabag, however, showed what they were made of and made the game a contest in the second period.
Ultimately, though, it's the Magpies in the hat for Friday's draw, and they'll relish whoever they get as their European adventure continues. Here's five things we learned from the evening at St James' Park.
Tonali angry and Howe not pleased either
Sandro Tonali's return to form is a welcome boost for Newcastle after Bruno Guimaraes' injury and the Italian was at it again on Tuesday night. After his two-goal blast against Aston Villa, Tonali now has a thirst for adding more to his tally.
He set United on their way with an early opener. He was at the heart of the build-up play, dancing his way into the box and then when the ball eventually fell to him he lashed home.
Just as eye-catching to Eddie Howe, however, was the late sprint to stop a counter-attack in the second half. It may not have been a headline-grabbing incident in the match but the United manager referenced it in his post-match press conference as a both a great example of his contribution but also how he was unhappy that the game had got too stretched.
Tonali himself was furious with the way Newcastle played in the second 45 minutes.
"It was a very great game for the first 10 minutes," he said. "I'm not very happy with the second half because we play just with the result because we scored nine goals but we had to do more because these fans deserve 100 per cent for 90 minutes every game.
"The first thing was don't concede a goal and the second half first 10 minutes we concede the first goal and it was a stupid goal."
With United demanding leadership in Guimaraes' absence, Tonali is stepping up again.
Great day for youngsters
Alex Murphy's start at left-back was long overdue. The Academy graduate has spent a lot of time on the bench but finally got his first 90 minutes of the season after Howe decided to give Lewis Hall a rest. He acquitted himself well, making a couple of good contributions in the first half before finding life tougher when switched to centre-half after the break.
Despite the calls for more kids to start, Howe was never going to ring too many changes. He recognised the threat Qarabag posed and the way the second half unfolded proved his point.
It was a brilliant moment, however, to see Leo Shahar get his debut in the closing stages. Just as Sean Neave had done in the first leg, Shahar got a late run out on a night that he will never forget.
Barcelona-bound?
'Is this the way to Barcelona?' sung the Strawberry End in the early minutes of the contest. It might well be. Newcastle will draw the Catalans or Chelsea in Friday's draw.
The 6-1 win in the first leg threatened to make last night's game little more than a glorified friendly but Newcastle promised they would be professional and treat Qarabag with respect. The way they started the game - both on the pitch and with the noise of the crowd - proved that.
The atmosphere understandably died in the second period although the couple of hundred Qarabag fans had plenty to cheer about as their side grabbed two deserved goals.
Joelinton's raw reaction
Joelinton's reaction to being substituted after 54 minutes was a curious one. The big Brazilian had started the contest superbly with a fantastic volley in the sixth minute to put the Magpies two goals ahead but his performance went downhill after that.
The midfielder was on two bookings from earlier on in the competition and needed to keep his nose clean to avoid a suspension. Another yellow card would have seen him banned for the first leg of United's last 16 tie.
It didn't stop the 29-year-old from producing a typically committed and aggressive performance. He was walking a tightrope, however, when he committed a couple of fouls in the space of a few minutes at the start of the second half.
Joelinton has missed a lot of football recently and understandably would have wanted to stay on the pitch longer but it wasn't worth the risk. He showed his frustration, gesticulating several times in the dugout after being withdrawn but it was the right decision.
Bring on Friday's draw
Newcastle already know that they will face either Barcelona or Chelsea in the next round but that doesn't make Friday's draw any less exciting. Fans will be counting the hours down to 11am.
Dan Burn believes the Magpies won't fear anyone at this stage of the competition. He said: "Anything can happen in knockout football but we feel as though we can compete with anybody. We've shown that, especially against Paris Saint-Germain, how good we can be.
"I think we elevate our game going into those games because there are bigger, better teams at this stage of the competition."
Ensure our latest sport headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as Preferred Source in your Google search settings