Chelsea defeated Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge, keeping their hopes of European football for next season alive in the Premier League. The Blues are currently in 11th place, four points behind seventh-place West Ham, with a game in hand. With this vital victory, Chelsea relieved the pressure on Mauricio Pochettino.
Chelsea scored an early goal through Nicolas Jackson's flick in the sixth minute after superb teamwork from the goalkeeper to midfield to attack, calming the tense atmosphere at Stamford Bridge. The Blues missed a few chances to extend their advantage and were made to pay after a mix-up in the Blues' defence allowed Alexander Isak to pull Newcastle level with a superb goal.
Starboy Palmer put Chelsea ahead again in the 57th minute. Palmer found space between the midfield and defence after receiving the ball from Enzo Fernández and drilled a shot into the bottom corner past Martin Dubravka.
Mykhailo Mudryk put the game beyond Newcastle in the 76th minute with a fantastic finish after a mazy run through the Newcastle defence. Although it was a nervy finish to the game at Stamford Bridge after Jacob Murphy scored a brilliant goal to cut the deficit.
Here at the Pride of London, we analyse standout Blues in this morale-boosting victory against Newcastle United.
Cole Palmer
Where would Chelsea be without arguably the signing of the season in the premier league?
Cole Palmer continues to grow from strength to strength as the season progresses. He was involved in the first two goals in the game. The Manchester City academy player performed superbly on the right-hand side of the Chelsea attack with Malo Gusto. It was an excellent performance for the Englishman.
Palmer has now made 19 league goal contributions (11 goals, eight assists) in a Chelsea shirt this season, boosting his Three Lions prospect further with a man-of-the-match performance in an entertaining game at Stamford Bridge.
Mykhailo Mudryk
Mudryk came in the 71st minute to replace the struggling Raheem Sterling. The quick-feet Ukrainian made a quick start to the game with a lively one-two with Nicolas Jackson in his first involvement after coming on. With the game delicately balanced at 2-1, Mudryk bamboozled his way through the heart of Newcastle's defence to score a wonderful solo goal to take the game away from the visitors. Mudryk now has seven Premier League goal involvements this season in 21 games. The Ukrainian is proving to the Chelsea management that he is just starting and is here to stay.
Malo Gusto
Despite the mix-up leading to Isak’s goal in the first half, Gusto combined superbly with Palmer on Chelsea's right side to nullify Newcastle. The 20-year-old is scintillating to watch going forward and impressive in defence, showcasing good technical ability. Gusto has made 20 league appearances this season, providing five assists.
The Frenchman has performed exceptionally well in recent weeks, effectively handling tricky wingers like Jeremy Doku and Luis Diaz. Chelsea fans must be delighted with their newfound star boy at right back, particularly given Reece James' recurring injury problems.