It has been a contrasting start to the season for Newcastle and Chelsea. Newcastle recovered from a stuttering start in the league to start firing again, while Chelsea have not recovered from last season’s trauma.
After a tremendous opening-day win in the Premier League over Aston Villa, where they won 5-1, Newcastle suffered multiple defeats before getting their groove back. Sandro Tonali, a summer recruit from AC Milan, scored on his Premier League debut, and Harvey Barnes (new arrival from Leicester City) also got his own goal. Usual suspect Alexander Isak scored twice in the one-sided contest. Three consecutive defeats then followed for Eddie Howe’s men. They lost 1-0 to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. Julian Alvarez’s spectacular first-half goal decided the contest before Liverpool scored two late goals at St. James Park to inflict a first home loss of the season on them.
Probably their poorest performance of the season, the Magpies fell 3-1 to Brighton at the AMEX Stadium. It was an unforgettable performance, but Eddie Howe’s men, by Calum Wilson’s strike from the penalty spot, got their second win against Brentford.
In their first UEFA Champions League game in twenty years, goalkeeper Nick Pope stole the show in Milan to deny AC Milan on multiple occasions as they began their season with a point in Milan. A thumping 8-0 bashing of Sheffield United at Bramall Lane – arguably one of the season’s performances – kept their fine run of form going. Another clean sheet and another win at St. James Park helped them overcome Manchester City in the Carabao Cup.
Newcastle continued their excellent form with a comfortable 2-0 win over newly promoted Burnley at home. Miguel Almiron and Isak scored in either half. In arguably the season’s performance, they defeated Paris Saint Germain 4-1 to record their first three points in the UEFA Champions League this season. Almiron and Dan Burn scored in the first half before Sean Longstaff and Fabian Schar rounded up the famous win. They played a 2-2 draw with West Ham United in the Premier League at the London Stadium. Isak scored twice in that game before Howe’s men defeated Crystal Palace 4-0 after the international break.
On the other hand, Chelsea’s season has been topsy-turvy. After last season’s unforgettable campaign, the Blues did a massive clearout while recruits were made. Apart from the summer arrivals, they also decided to appoint Mauricio Pochettino, former Spurs manager, as the new man to direct their affairs.
The West London club got their season underway with a 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Stamford Bridge. New boy Alex Dsasi scored on his full debut to help his side avoid an opening-day defeat. After that, Pochettino’s side lost 3-1 to West Ham before claiming their first win of the season against newly promoted Luton Town.
Chelsea built on that first Premier League with another win against Wimbledon in the Carabao to seal progression into the next round of the competition. Upon return to Premier League action, the Blues lost twice in their next three games. Defeats to Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest – both at home and a draw at Bournemouth.
The Blues did well in the Carabao Cup, defeating Brighton 1-0 to zoom into the next stage. Back-to-back wins in the Premier League against Burnley and Fulham made it three consecutive wins in all competitions on the bounce. After the international break, they squandered a two-goal lead to draw against Arsenal in the London derby at Stamford Bridge.
As of the time of writing, only Liverpool have avoided defeat at St. James’ Park in all competitions this season. Although Chelsea have won twice in their past four visits to Newcastle, they face a side with tremendous motivation and desire to do great things.
Regarding the head-to-head record, Newcastle United and Chelsea have played 59 Games since 1995. Among them, Newcastle United won 15 games (Total Goals 50), Chelsea won 32 (Total Goals 91) and drew 12.
Match tickets
This epic match at St. James’ Park in Newcastle kicks off on Saturday, 25th November, at 4 PM UK time, and it will be shown live on TNT Sports, with coverage starting from around 3 PM.
This is the 13th League game of the season for the two teams. Newcastle have been superb at their 52,305-capacity stadium, and Chelsea know they need to work hard to end on the losing side here. A lunchtime kick-off like this could be filled with drama, and expect Chelsea fans to be here in their full voices.
Given the game’s standard, getting Newcastle vs Chelsea tickets could be challenging to obtain. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Eddie Howe barely changes his Newcastle team, but the approach is usually different in games. With Sandro Tonali expected to be away for a long time, the manager will be looking to engineer another solid team to take his side to greater heights. Emil Krafth, Joe Willock, and Harvey Barnes are long-term absentees and are not expected to feature here.
Newcastle United: Pope; Trippier, Schar, Burn, Targett; Anderson, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Isak, Gordon.
Despite the long list of absentees, Mauricio Pochettino has finally found the right team and combination since taking over in the summer. Gallagher has been transformed under the new manager, while Mudryk looks ready to play the part. Those in the physio’s room include Romeo Lavia, Carney Chukwuemeka, Ben Chilwell, and Christopher Nkunku.
Chelsea: Sanchez; Gusto, Thiago Silva, Colwill, Cucurella, Gallagher, Caicedo, Enzo, Palmer, Mudryk, Sterling.
Prediction
Newcastle are up against Chelsea at their ground, where they have slayed several teams this season. Newcastle have beaten Manchester City, PSG and the likes at home in all competitions, so Chelsea might be in for a ride.
Chelsea have dominated this fixture in the past, with more wins going to the Blues in the head-to-head record.
Newcastle 1-1 Chelsea
