After a string of positive results before the international break, Chelsea came crashing down to earth with an embarrassing 4-1 mauling at the hands of Newcastle United on Saturday.
Alexander Isak’s early strike was cancelled out by a glorious free-kick from Raheem Sterling midway through an entertaining first half, and it seemed tough to predict which way this game would go at the interval.
Two minutes of madness on the hour mark, however, handed the contest to Newcastle. Jamaal Lascelles headed the Magpies back ahead before an enormous error from Thiago Silva gifted a goal to Joelinton immediately after.
Reece James’ red card made life even harder for Chelsea, who still had time to concede a fourth as Anthony Gordon’s low drive capped off a dominant victory for Newcastle.
How the game unfolded
Some smart play from Newcastle led to the opening goal 13 minutes in. Isak was alone in the box and perfectly found by young Lewis Miley, and the Swede made no mistake from ten yards.
It was a deserved lead for Newcastle, who looked stronger at both ends of the field, but Chelsea dragged themselves level through Sterling’s sumptuous free-kick 23 minutes in.
Joelinton missed a glorious chance to restore Newcastle’s advantage soon after. The Brazilian escaped Conor Gallagher from a corner but somehow steered a header wide when it appeared easier to score.
Next to threaten was Enzo Fernandez, whose fizzing drive needed a strong hand from Nick Pope, and the Newcastle stopper survived a massive scare as his poor clearance perhaps should have been punished by Gallagher.
As the first half came to a close, Kieran Trippier’s free-kick thumped the bar and fizzed over Robert Sanchez’s goal, bringing an entertaining, even half of football to an end.
The start of the second half wasn’t as electric but St James’ Park erupted on the hour mark when Lascelles rose highest to thump home Gordon’s cross.
Just seconds later and it was 3-1. Thiago Silva fluffed an attempted back-pass and sent Joelinton one-on-one with Sanchez, and the Brazilian crashed into the bottom corner to double Newcastle’s advantage.
To make matters worse for Chelsea, captain James was shown a second yellow card with 20 minutes to go, effectively ruling out any chances of a dramatic comeback.
Former Blues target Gordon rubbed salt in the wounds with a late strike which by no means flattered Newcastle, who dominated the second half and watched Chelsea implode.
GK: Nick Pope…
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