Anthony Gordon lit up the Champions League on Wednesday night with a sensational four goals – including a hat-trick inside 34 minutes – in the first-half away to Qarabag.
Newcastle went into half-time with a commanding 5-0 lead in Baku to ensure their return leg against the Azerbaijani champions will be a far less stressful one.
And Gordon, scoring in the third, 32nd, 33rd and 45th-minute stoppage time of the knockout phase play-off, means he now holds the record for the fastest-ever hat-trick by an English player in the Champions League.
The winger was, admittedly, helped by some calamitous defending by Qarabag, whose centre-back Kevin Medina completely misjudged the ball to leave the 24-year-old one-on-one for his third.
His first finish, however, was a masterclass in attacking. On the back of Dan Burn’s marauding run through the heart of the Qarabag midfield, Gordon ghosted in behind the defence and slotted home.
The England international later scored two penalties in the space of 12 minutes, taking his tally to 10 goals in the Champions League this season, ahead of the likes of Harry Kane and Erling Haaland.
Anthony Gordon scored four first-half goals for Newcastle away to Qarabag on Wednesday
The hat-trick was a career first for Gordon and his fourth strike made him just the second player in the Champions League to have bagged four in the first-half of a Champions League game.
Luiz Adriano, while playing for Shahktar Donetsk against BATE Borisov, was the first to achieve the feat in 2014.
The Englishman also becomes just the 18th player in the competition’s history to score four in one game, joining an illustrious list which includes the likes of Haaland, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Kylian Mbappe.
Only Messi and Adriano have scored five in one Champions League game, with the Barcelona legend’s coming against Leverkusen in March 2012. Meanwhile, Adriano’s came in the tie against BATE.
Gordon’s goals also meant he surpassed Alan Shearer’s Champions League record of seven during the legend’s time at St James’ Park.
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