Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea (Willock 67′)
After spending last Christmas in the bottom three of the Premier League table, Newcastle will be in the top three this year after winning their fifth game in a row with a Joe Willock wonder goal condemning Chelsea to defeat.
Graham Potter made five changes from the Chelsea team beaten by Manchester City in the Carabao Cup but the alterations did not have the desired effect as the visitors were second best for most of the contest.
Chelsea have now gone five league matches without a win and lost three league games in succession for the first time since November 2015.
The manner of their performance will raise awkward questions for Potter who, after a promising start, has overseen a disappointing downturn in form, which leaves the Blues eighth in the table and eight points behind Spurs in fourth.
More from Football
Rodgers issues positive update on Maddison after England star's World Cup injury scare12 November, 2022
Toney delivers 'perfect response' to Southgate's World Cup snub as Brentford stun Man City12 November, 2022
Gary Lineker: 'Human rights abuses and homophobia in Qatar make me queasy about this World Cup'12 November, 2022England call-up Callum Wilson was unable to start the game due to illness and Newcastle missed his penalty box instincts during a dominant spell of possession either side of half-time.
The recently crowned Premier League player of the month Miguel Almiron blazed a volley over the bar and Joelinton twice flashed crosses into the box from promising positions with no-one in black and white able to get on the end of them.
Potter tweaked his 3-4-2-1 system to a 4-3-3 to match up Newcastle and stem the tide and it temporarily worked with Conor Gallagher – another member of Gareth Southgate’s squad bound for Qatar – forcing a superb save from Nick Pope after 65 minutes.
Pope’s intervention proved to be vital as less than two minutes later Newcastle went in front through Willock, who bent an unstoppable strike past Edouard Mendy from the edge of the box after Almiron had nudged the ball into his path.
WHAT A STRIKE!!
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 12, 2022
JOE WILLOCKKKKKKpic.twitter.com/A1Jj5HhMEF
Wilson entered the fray 15 minutes from time in place of Chris Wood and while he didn’t have a chance to add to his goalscoring tally, he did come through that period unscathed.
The same was true of Pope, Kieran Trippier, Mason Mount and Gallagher, which will no doubt please Southgate, although Mount’s form may be of concern to the England boss ahead of the World Cup opener with Iran in nine days time. Raheem Sterling, meanwhile, was not involved due to an injury.
Player ratings
Newcastle (4-3-3): Pope 7, Trippier 8, Schar 7, Botman 7 (Targett 6), Burn 6, Guimaraes 7, Longstaff 6, Willock 7 (Murphy 6), Almiron 7, Joelinton 7, Wood 6 (Wilson 6)
Chelsea (3-4-2-1): Mendy 7, Azpilicueta 5 (Pulisic 6), Chalobah 6, Koulibaly 6, Loftus-Cheek 6 (Silva 6), Jorginho 5, Kovacic 6, Hall 6 (Cucurella), Mount 5 (Ziyech 6), Gallagher 6, Broja 6 (Havertz 6)
Although Chelsea rallied late on, they were unable to craft any clear-cut chances against a Newcastle defence that has been one of the most resolute in the Premier League. Tempers flared as players on both sides flew into tackles towards the end with substitute Jamaal Lascelles cautioned for his involvement.
Tempers FLARE at the end of the game between Newcastle and Chelsea
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) November 12, 2022
The World Cup has come at an inopportune time for Eddie Howe given the sensational form his side are in but it will provide a welcome break for Potter and his coaching staff after a testing few weeks.
Reaction
Jamie Carragher was impressed by Newcastle’s performance, likening their performance in the final 10 minutes to that of Atletico Madrid under Diego Simeone, a nod to the La Liga side’s mastery of the dark arts.
He tweeted: “Eddie Howe is getting more from his players than any other manager in the PL. While you can’t believe Chelsea spent £275m in the summer, on a team that was very good in the last couple of years.”
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/UCfBOdx
Post a Comment