Key events
Have a read of today’s Football Daily, if you like.
Let’s unpack those teams a little.
For Chelsea:
Chalobah preferred to Thiago Silva at centre back. I’m not sure I would fancy the Brazilian against Isak, either. Cucurella comes in for his first start since December. He hasn’t started in a league win since October. Sterling gets the nod over Mudryk, Madueke, and Chukwuemeka. Chelsea look like they are lining up in a 4-2-3-1.
For Newcastle:
Willock starts ahead of Miley but otherwise that’s a fairly strong, settled team. Yes, there are plenty of injuries – Joelinton, Nick Pope, Callum Wilson and captain Kieran Trippier are all sidelined, and Lewis Hall unavailable against his parent club – but there are some fine back ups, including Tino Livramento, who only left Chelsea in 2021. He’s a brilliant player. What is interesting is the lack of a threat on the bench, not one attacking player. Jacob Murphy can run around a bit on the wing, but there’s nobody obvious that can change the game.
The teams!
Chelsea: Petrovic, Gusto, Disasi, Chalobah, Cucurella, Fernandez, Caicedo, Palmer, Gallagher, Sterling, Jackson.
Subs: Sanchez, Thiago Silva, Mudryk, Madueke, Chukwuemeka, Casadei, Deivid Washington, Gilchrist, Acheampong.
Newcastle: Dubravka, Livramento, Schar, Botman, Burn, Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes, Willock, Almiron, Isak, Gordon.
Subs: Lascelles, Ritchie, Targett, Krafth, Karius, Jacob Murphy, Anderson, White, Miley.
Referee: John Brooks
Preamble
Newcastle arrived at Stamford Bridge on the evening of 2 May 2012 having not won a league match there since 1986. They left with a famous three points, made all the sweeter by the nature of the winning goals. I’m not sure I’ve seen a better double strike by a single player than the two goals Papise Cissé scored that night.
The second goal is arguably one of the greatest ever scored in the Premier League. Cissé means it, absolutely no doubt. This isn’t a lucky pop, but rather a calculated, audacious wonderstrike that almost defies logic to beat Prime Petr Cech. And the quality of the second strike rather overshadows the first, which is a brilliant goal in its own right: instinctive and powerful.
It was a vintage Newcastle team, full of both talent and cult heroes. Hatem Ben Arfa, Jonás Manuel Gutiérrez, Fabricio Coloccini, Demba Ba, Shola Ameobi – led by none other than Alan ‘Hips’ Pardew – comfortably beat a Chelsea side that would, just over two weeks later, go on to win the Champions League. Newcastle haven’t won at Stamford Bridge since. Their Premier League record at the Bridge looks like: played 28, lost 20, drew seven and won one.
Let’s see if Newcastle can improve that desperate record tonight. They won’t have a much better opportunity, against this rather dispirited and depleted Chelsea side.
Kick-off: 8pm GMT
