Anthony Gordon scored four goals for Newcastle United as they thrashed Qarabag 6-1 in their Champions League play-off first leg.

All four of Gordon's strikes came before the break, with Malick Thiaw and Jacob Murphy also getting on the scoresheet for the Magpies in Azerbaijan, while Elvin Cafarquliyev got a consolation goal for the hosts.

Newcastle were ahead after just 122 seconds, their fastest goal in the competition, as Gordon slotted in from Dan Burn's pass before Thiaw doubled their lead in the ninth minute as he headed in from Kieran Trippier's deep cross.

Gordon scored from the penalty spot shortly after the half-hour mark following a handball from Matheus Silva, and the England international then nicked the ball off Kevin Medina from Qarabag's restart and rounded the goalkeeper to complete his hat-trick.

There was still time for another goal in the first half, with Gordon drawing a foul from Mateusz Kochalski in the box and dispatching his second spot-kick, despite captain Trippier asking to take the penalty.

Cafarquliyev gave the home fans something to smile about when his goal was eventually given after the linesman initially raised his flag for offside, but Newcastle still got the last laugh when Jacob Murphy's deflected strike from distance flew past Kochalski.

4 - Anthony Gordon is only the second player in UEFA Champions League history to score four goals in the first half of a game, after Luiz Adriano for Shakhtar Donetsk against BATE Borisov in October 2014. Another. pic.twitter.com/wPmYvPSCDb

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 18, 2026

Data Debrief: Gordon into the history books

Newcastle scored six goals for the first time in European competition, and it was a thoroughly deserved margin of victory for Eddie Howe's side. They produced 5.48 expected goals (xG) from 22 shots to Qarabag's 0.46 from eight attempts.

Gordon was responsible for 3.36 of the Magpies' xG tally, also registering the most shots (six) for his side, as well as the second-most touches in the box (11) and passes in the final third (11).

He became only the second player in Champions League history to score four goals in the first half of a game, after Luiz Adriano for Shakhtar Donetsk against BATE Borisov in October 2014.

And in 33 minutes, Gordon scored the fastest ever hat-trick by an English player, and by a player for an English club, in the competition.