Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle: Blues secure win over Magpies
Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle: Blues secure win over Magpies. Cole Palmer‘s second-half strike proved to be the winner as Chelsea beat Newcastle United 2-1 at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon to bounce back from their defeat at Anfield last time out.
The England international struck the winner after goals from Nicolas Jackson and Alexander Isak had sent the two sides in level at half-time.
The three points mean Chelsea moved into the top four ahead of Arsenal’s clash with Liverpool later in the day, while the Magpies have dropped into the bottom half of the Premier League table.
How the game unfolded;
It was an entertaining start from both sides, with Noni Madueke looking to dribble out wide before a Palmer strike was disallowed for offside despite producing a tidy finish from Nicolas Jackson’s pass.
The Magpies did struggled to make their hosts uncomfortable as the Blues zipped the ball around, though Bruno Guimaraes was unhappy to see a penalty appeal turned down after he went down.
After moments of promise at either end, Chelsea took the lead. A breathtaking pass from Palmer took out the entire Newcastle backline and allowed Pedro Neto to square for Jackson, who tapped in his seventh league goal of the season.
It was Palmer who was impressing the Stamford Bridge crowd most often, skipping away from several Newcastle challenges and causing constant problems for the visitors with his vision and magics.
However, Eddie Howe’s side didn’t wilt despite being outclassed and managed to draw level just after the half-hour mark. A flowing move from right to left ended with Lewis Hall flashing a ball across the six-yard box where Isak was waiting to tap home.
It was tough luck for Chelsea, who had been the more progressive and threatening side, but they were back in front at the start of the second half.
Levi Colwill nicked possession back and Romeo Lavia slid it to Palmer, who was allowed to run unmarked before fizzing a confident shot past Nick Pope at the near post.
The Blues had attacked with purpose all afternoon and were well worthy of their lead, though Newcastle didn’t away and searched for another equaliser. Joe Willock’s cross found Isak but his header was blocked, while the Swede then managed to go around Sanchez but couldn’t get a shot off in time as Chelsea’s defenders got back in time to recover.
There were late shouts for a penalty for the home side as Christopher Nkunku went down, but no further goal-mouth action arrived as Chelsea continued their strong recent form and stretched Newcastle’s winless run in the league to five games.
