Newcastle 3-2 Qarabag: Sandro Tonali slams "stupid" moment in brutally honest Champions League assessment

Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali has slammed the "stupid" goal his side conceded in their 3-2 Champions League victory over Qarabag at St James' Park on Tuesday.

Boasting an insurmountable 6-1 lead from the playoff first leg on Qarabag's turf, Eddie Howe's men simply needed to avoid the most catastrophic result to book their ticket into the last 16 of the tournament.

The much-changed Magpies did not rest on their laurels in the opening exchanges, as Sandro Tonali and Joelinton struck inside the opening six minutes to put Newcastle 8-1 up on aggregate.

Joelinton's venomous volley saw a new Champions League record set, but Newcastle did not maintain their momentum after going 2-0 up, and a plucky Qarabag side made a game of it in the second half.

Camilo Duran's fine finish gave the away end something to cheer in the 50th minute, although Sven Botman restored the Magpies' two-goal advantage with a thumping header just two minutes later.

Newcastle 3-2 Qarabag: Sandro Tonali offers brutally honest reaction to Champions League win

There would be another twist to the second-leg tale, though, as Elvin Jafarguliyev pulled another goal back for Qarabag after Aaron Ramsdale had kept out Marko Jankovic's penalty.

Jafarguliyev's somewhat fortunate strike rounded off the scoring on the evening and in the tie, as Newcastle comfortably progressed to the last 16 of the Champions League for the first time in their history.

However, Tonali was brutally honest with his assessment of his side's display in the first 15 minutes of the second half, telling Amazon Prime: "A very good game in the first 10 minutes but I'm not very happy for the second half because we play just for the result.

"We have to do more because these fans deserve 100% in every game. We can do 100% more. We need to push every minute of the game. The first thing was don't concede a goal.

"The first 10 minutes of the second half we concede the first goal. I think it was a stupid goal. Every time we concede a goal we are not happy. But we are happy because we progress in the Champions League. We are training a lot for this."

Newcastle 3-2 Qarabag: Chelsea or Barcelona for Magpies in last 16?

Either Chelsea or Barcelona will await Howe's men in the last 16 of the competition, and Jacob Murphy was also asked whether he would prefer to take on the Blues or the Blaugrana next up.

The winger - who celebrated his 31st birthday tonight - kept his cards close to his chest, though, replying: "Anyone. Honestly with this group of players we'll take anyone on, especially with knockout football we back ourselves. Bring on whoever's to come."

Newcastle will discover their opponents for the last 16 of the tournament on Friday, following the completion of Wednesday's remaining playoff games.

The Magpies now prepare to face Everton in Saturday's Premier League contest, before hosting Manchester United in a blockbuster battle next Wednesday evening.