NEWCASTLE goalkeeper Nick Pope recorded his first Champions League assist with a spectacular 65-yard throw to Harvey Barnes.
With the Magpies 1-0 up against Benfica in the 70th minute, the England international capitalised on a high press with a huge throw to Barnes just over the halfway line.
The winger let it bounce unchallenged before making his way into the box and firing his shot into the bottom-left corner, leaving opposition players stunned.
While summer signing Nick Woltemade ran over to celebrate with him, the likes of Sven Botman, Malick Thiaw, Dan Burn and Bruno Guimaraes made a beeline for Pope following his genius move.
Fans took to social media to react to the goal, with one person writing: “Harvey Barnes showing off, but Nick Pope deserves a medal for that assist. Newcastle really out here making it look easy.”
Another said: “I need to know where the f*** his ability to throw like that came from!”
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A third commented: “The goalkeepers’ union is proud of this one!”
A fourth added: “The assist from Nick Pope is ridiculous.”
While another wrote: “Stop what you’re doing and take a minute to watch this Nick Pope launch and assist. Genuinely unbelievable.”
Barnes went on to score a second in the 83rd minute as Newcastle cruised to a 3-0 win over Benfica.
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Anthony Gordon had broken the deadlock in the first half with a tap-in from six yards out.
Speaking after the match, Gordon said: “It means everything [to be the first Newcastle player to score in three consecutive Champions League games] but we need more, my ambition doesn’t stop there.
“Because we had so many chances, we had to put one away to calm the nerves. I was glad to see it go in.
“Playing with [Jacob] Murphy, I knew he was going to play that ball every time. That goal is all about him.”
On the contribution from Pope, he added: “We all love [Nick] Pope. He is one of the most popular people in the dressing room, he is a top guy and a top keeper.
“He has kept us in so many games already this season and some of the saves he made were incredible.”
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