Good morning! Thank you very much for joining
Sports Mole for today's early Premier League kickoff as champions Chelsea host
Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge!
This is a good chance for Chelsea to temporarily gain ground on those above them in the table, with victory drawing them level with second-place Manchester United, who face a difficult trip to the Emirates this afternoon. Newcastle are in poor form at the moment, so the hosts will certainly be favourites to win, but Rafael Benitez would relish the chance to come away with something on his first return to Stamford Bridge since leaving as Chelsea boss.
We will take a closer look at all the stories and sub-plots a little later, but first let's check out the team news...
CHELSEA STARTING XI: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Christensen; Moses, Kante, Drinkwater, Fabregas, Alonso; Hazard, Morata
CHELSEA SUBS: Caballero, Zappacosta, Cahill, Bakayoko, Willian, Pedro, Batshuayi
NEWCASTLE STARTING XI: Darlow; Mbemba, Clark, Lejeune; Manquillo, Murphy, Merino, Diame, Ritchie; Perez, Gayle
NEWCASTLE SUBS: Elliot, Yedlin, Hayden, Shelvey, Aarons, Joselu, Mitrovic
What can we make of those two sides, then?
Well, starting with the hosts the headline news is that Eden Hazard and Cesar Azpilicueta both return to the starting XI having been rested during the midweek win over Swansea, with Hazard introduced as a late sub and Azpilicueta unused from the bench.
Azpilicueta had started 74 consecutive Premier League games before Wednesday, so his omission came as something of a surprise, but he returns to the back three this afternoon.
The team sheet suggests that Chelsea will play with a 3-5-2 formation today, with Hazard starting up front alongside
Alvaro Morata. Conte hinted recently that he could utilise Hazard as a striker more often in the future and, while the Belgian is unlikely to be an out-and-out number nine in the formation, it should see him given more attacking freedom.
Morata is, of course, well used to playing that role himself and with eight Premier League goals to his name already this season he will fancy his chances of getting on the scoresheet again today.
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Another notable inclusion in the Chelsea lineup for this one is Victor Moses, who makes his first start for the Blues since October 14 following a month-and-a-half on the sidelines.
The Nigerian will play in his right wing-back role as Zappacosta drops to the bench. Danny Drinkwater is included from the start in midfield too alongside Fabregas and Kante, while Bakayoko once again only makes the bench.
Batshuayi is amongst the subs today having overcome a recent injury to make the bench, while Pedro and Willian - the latter of whom scored home and away against Newcastle the last time both sides were in the Premier League together - are also on a very strong Chelsea bench.
In all, there have been four changes from the midweek win over Swansea, with Azpilicueta, Moses, Drinkwater and Hazard replacing Cahill, Zappacosta, Willian and Pedro.
Rafael Benitez rang the changes in midweek too, making five to his side for their draw with West Bromwich Albion, and he has made a further three for this game today.
Javier Manquillo, Mo Diame and Dwight Gayle all return to the side having been dropped in midweek, with Yedlin, Hayden and Joselu the men to make way at Stamford Bridge.
Interestingly, Darlow and Mbemba - both of whom had been out of favour prior to the midweek fixtures - retain their places in the side ahead of Elliot and Shelvey, who once again have to make do with a place on the bench this afternoon.
Benitez looks set to match up with Chelsea's 3-5-2 system, with Mbemba, Clark and Lejeune backing up that defensive trio in the continued absence of captain Jamaal Lascelles.
Clark is actually Newcastle's joint top-scorer so far this season with two goals, which won't exactly be music to the ears of their attacking players - even more so when they learn that Lascelles is also on two.
The only attacking player to have matched that tally in the Premier League this season is Joselu, who starts on the bench this afternoon. Gayle is the man entrusted with leading the line, although it could be a lonely job for much of the game.
Ayoze Perez should give Gayle some support, but he usually plays in a slightly deeper role behind the striker and most of his efforts may well be used up defensively if this game goes as expected.
The Magpies do have some powerful runners and tricky players that are capable of hitting Chelsea on the break, though, with Murphy, Merino, Diame and Ritchie all capable of leading a counter-attack if and when the opportunity arises.
There is no doubt that Newcastle will go into this match as underdogs, though, particularly as Chelsea know that they cannot afford to drop any more points if they are to keep their title hopes alive before Christmas.
Manchester City's form is impossible to live with right now, but Chelsea must ensure that they keep winning themselves just in case Pep Guardiola's side slip up at any point. City have been close to dropping points on a few occasions in recent games, and it is imperative that the chasing pack capitalise when that does eventually occur.
Dropped points at home to Newcastle would not be acceptable for the champions, then, but victory would see them move level on points with second-placed Manchester United and within eight of Man City again.
Perhaps just as importantly, they would also temporarily move six points clear of fifth-place Liverpool, and unless City's form slows down then it may well end up just being a battle for those remaining Champions League places this season.
In addition to Chelsea and Man City, the other two teams currently in the top four - Arsenal and Manchester United - face each other in the late kickoff today, so Chelsea know that at least one of their direct rivals will drop points this weekend, making victory here even more important.
The Blues do go into the game in good form, though. They have won five and lost none of their last six Premier League outings, taking 16 points from a possible 18 in that time and keeping four clean sheets in the process. The only match they have failed to win in that time was the 1-1 draw with Liverpool last weekend.
Chelsea also seem to be finding their form at home again having won their last four matches at Stamford Bridge across all competitions, while they are unbeaten in five since the 1-0 reverse against Manchester City in September.
Another victory today would make it five in a row for the first time this season, and they have won the past two by a 1-0 margin, beating Manchester United and Swansea.
However, Chelsea's home form on the whole this season has been worse than we have grown to expect from them, and the Blues have actually picked up more points on their travels than they have in front of their own fans this season.
Antonio Conte's side have amassed 16 points from seven away games compared to 13 from the same number of home games, while they have also scored fewer and conceded more goals here at Stamford Bridge.
Indeed, Chelsea have already dropped more Premier League points at Stamford Bridge this season (eight) than they did throughout their entire title-winning 2016-17 campaign (six), with 12 matches still to go here this term.
If only home form counted this season then Chelsea would sit fifth in the table, whereas if the same way true away from home then the Blues would be second, behind only Manchester City.
This time last season Chelsea were right in the midst of their record-equalling winning run, and on this very matchday they actually beat Manchester City 3-1 to record at eighth consecutive victory.
The champions' upcoming fixtures suggest another winning run could be due too, with Chelsea facing Newcastle, West Ham, Huddersfield, Southampton, Everton, Brighton and Stoke between now and the end of the year. Of those, only 10th-placed Brighton currently reside in the top half of the table, and Chelsea would expect maximum points from all of those games.
If Newcastle are to stop that at the first hurdle - or second if you count the midweek win over Swansea - then they will need to significantly improve their own form having begun to slide down the table in recent weeks.
The Magpies made a bright start to the campaign and at one point strung together a run of three consecutive wins, but they have won just one of their nine Premier League games since then, with three draws and five defeats in that time.
That poor form includes an ongoing run of five matches without a top-flight victory, and they only picked up their first point of that streak with a 2-2 draw over West Bromwich Albion in midweek.
The Magpies looked on course for a fifth consecutive defeat when they fell 2-0 down against the Baggies, but they quickly halved the deficit again and a Jonny Evans own goal completed the comeback late on as Newcastle ended their run of defeats. A comeback like that could well be enough to galvanize them into a spell of improved form, but this is not the ideal match to have straight after it.
The run of only one point from the last 15 available has left Newcastle sitting 12th in the Premier League table with 15 points from 14 games, but they still enjoy a five-point cushion over the relegation zone.
Indeed, should they pull off a shock victory today then they would climb back into the top half temporarily at least, although a draw would not be enough for them to move position by virtue of their goal difference.
The old art of putting the ball in the back of the net has been Newcastle's biggest problem so far this season, as I alluded to earlier with Clark and Lascelles among the joint top-scorers for the Magpies.
Newcastle had scored just once in their four-match losing streak before the 2-2 draw with West Brom, and throughout the whole season only two teams outside the bottom four have scored fewer goals. Newcastle have averaged less than a goal per game so far, which is something they will need to improve on.
The Magpies must also improve their away form, with just one win from seven on the road so far this season including an ongoing run of five without a victory.
Away struggles in the Premier League are nothing new for Newcastle, though - they have won just one of their last 18 Premier League away games stretching back to December 2015, losing 13 of those for a pretty measly tally of seven points from a possible 54 in that time.
Indeed, only Huddersfield, Everton, West Ham and Crystal Palace have picked up fewer away points in the Premier League this season, but Rafael Benitez will have more reason to target a positive result at Stamford Bridge than most other grounds in the division.
Benitez built up a fierce rivalry with Chelsea during his time at Liverpool, and then controversial took over as interim boss at the Blues in late 2012 - much to the chagrin of the Chelsea fans. This is his first return to Stamford Bridge since his seven-month stint as manager came to an end, with his last game seeing Chelsea win the Europa League title.
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Benitez's record as an opposition manager at Stamford Bridge is not great, though. The Spaniard has only ever won one of his 12 competitive visits here, drawing four and losing seven during his time as Liverpool boss.
His solitary win as a visiting boss here came more than nine years ago, when Jose Bosingwa's own goal handed Liverpool a 1-0 win in October 2008.
PREDICTION: Right, we're 10 minutes away from kickoff at Stamford Bridge, which means that it is time for a prediction!
I can only see this game going one way. Chelsea are in good form whereas Newcastle are not, and the home advantage only increases the likelihood of Chelsea victory. The champions may have made harder work of Swansea than many expected, but they have Hazard back available for this one and that should help them cruise to victory.
SPORTS MOLE SAYS: Chelsea 3-0 Newcastle
Newcastle have only ever won one Premier League match at Stamford Bridge before, with that victory coming in May 2012 when Papiss Cisse's brace handed the Magpies a 2-0 victory.
Chelsea have won 15 of their 22 home Premier League games against Newcastle, by contrast, including each of the last four.
The most recent of those came in February 2016, and it was a comfortable win for Chelsea on that occasion too as goals from Costa, Pedro (2), Willian and Traore handed them a 5-1 victory having raced into a 3-0 lead inside 20 minutes.
Indeed, only against Tottenham Hotspur have Chelsea won more home Premier League games than against Newcastle.
It's not just at Stamford Bridge that Newcastle have had problems before, though. London as a whole has not been the happiest of hunting grounds for the Magpies, and a defeat today would be their 70th Premier League loss in the capital, levelling Everton's unwanted record.
The players are on their way out now and we're just about ready to get started now. A quick reminder of the team news before we do...
CHELSEA STARTING XI: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Rudiger, Christensen; Moses, Kante, Drinkwater, Fabregas, Alonso; Hazard, Morata
NEWCASTLE STARTING XI: Darlow; Mbemba, Clark, Lejeune; Manquillo, Murphy, Merino, Diame, Ritchie; Perez, Gayle
KICKOFF: Here we go, then! Newcastle get us underway at Stamford Bridge!
Chelsea have made quite a nervous start to this match. A few passes have already gone astray and they looked a little jittery in defence too when Newcastle came forward for the first time.
First bright attack for Chelsea as they get the ball inside the Newcastle box, but some scrambling defence just about keeps them at bay. The hosts burst into life quickly there, though.
Chelsea have settled into the game now. They are beginning to stroke the ball about at their own tempo and Hazard is enjoying a growing influence on the game now.
SAVE! The first shot of the afternoon comes from Newcastle as Perez breaks into the box following a rare mistake from Azpilicueta. The ball eventually falls for Merino, but his effort is tame and easy for Courtois to collect.
SHOT! Morata tries a snapshot at the other end after collecting a knockdown from Hazard, but his first-time volley from a tight angle flies off target.
GOAL! Chelsea 0-1 Newcastle (Dwight Gayle)
Newcastle have made a really bright start to this game, and they are rewarded with a shock opening goal after only 12 minutes!
A defensive mix-up sees Alonso sell Courtois short with a back-pass from the edge of his own box - something which was dangerous anyway considering how crowded things were around there. Murphy is quickly on to it but Courtois beats him to the ball, getting two hands to it. However, it then falls straight to the feet of Gayle, who is left with a simple finish into the empty net.
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Well, that wasn't in the script. Chelsea need to respond here, but they have made a really sluggish and sloppy start to this match. Conte will not be happy whatsoever.
Half a chance for Chelsea to respond quickly as Christensen rises highest to meet a corner, but his header goes a long way over the crossbar.
CHANCE! Huge save from Darlow to deny Hazard! The Belgian looks guaranteed to level things up in some style, collecting Fabregas's brilliant pass over the top with a sensational first touch inside the box. His second touch is flicked towards goal, but Darlow's save is every bit as impressive from point-blank range.
PENALTY SHOUT! Chelsea want a penalty here as once again Newcastle are beaten by a straight pass through the middle. This time it is Rudiger who floats the pass over to Morata, who gets a foot to the ball inside the box. Darlow is charging out and catches the Spaniard, who goes down. Nothing given, but it could easily have been a penalty.
OFF THE POST! Chelsea are inches away from levelling things up as Christensen steers a header towards goal, but it comes back off the outside of the post!
GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle (Eden Hazard)
Chelsea have been knocking on the door since that opening goal, and they have the breakthrough now!
Lejeune is at full stretch to cut out a cross before it can reach Morata, but his clearance only falls to Hazard, whose shot goes into the ground and bounces up past Darlow and into the far corner. It had been coming.
Chelsea were slow to get going in this one, but their response to going behind was really good. They could have levelled things up one a couple of occasions before Hazard did restore parity, and now they will be looking for a quick second.
In fairness, Newcastle are not the only club to have problems subduing the Belgian...
Chelsea are in control of this match now. Newcastle made a good start to the game, but ever since breaking the deadlock they have been on the backfoot and unable to really enjoy any lengthy spell of possession.
One thing Newcastle have been able to do well today is press high up the pitch. Whenever Chelsea have the ball in defence there are always black and white shirts preventing them from playing an easy ball out, often forcing them to give it back to Courtois.
That happens once again here as Azpilicueta plays it back to Courtois and nearly doesn't put enough on it, but the Chelsea keeper gets there just in front of Gayle.
Here is that equalising goal from Eden Hazard for your viewing pleasure...
GOAL! Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle (Alvaro Morata)
Chelsea have scored more headed goals than any other team so far this season, and they can add another to their tally now.
Victor Moses advances down the right flank before drilling a powerful cross into the box which takes a deflection on the way through. Lejeune cannot cut it out and Mbemba is far too weak when tussling with Morata, who reacts well to steer the ball home from close range. It looked like a simple finish, but the ball arrived at such pace that the Spaniard did well to convert it.
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That is Morata's 10th goal of the season in all competitions, and he may well fancy his chances of getting more today. Chelsea are on top right now and I would be surprised if we had seen the last of the goals.
SHOT! Chelsea come pouring forward again with Morata and Hazard leading the charge. Newcastle's defence keeps them at bay for a while, but the ball eventually falls to Drinkwater who slices a long-range effort well wide.
Newcastle have managed to stem the tide a little in the last few minutes, but Chelsea are still very much in control of this game and look dangerous almost every time they come forward.
Rafael Benitez will simply want to get to half time without further damage now. A one-goal deficit means that his side are still in this one, but should they fall further behind then it would be really difficult to see them coming back from it.
A free kick is only cleared as far as Lejeune, who shows good technique to fire a first-time volley towards goal which Alonso deflects behind for a corner.
There will be a minimum of two minutes added time at the end of this first half.
YELLOW CARD! You won't see many more obvious yellow cards than this one. Clark sticks a leg out to trip Hazard from behind, ensuring that the Belgian would not escape him.
HALF TIME: Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle
The first half comes to an end at Stamford Bridge, and it is Chelsea who go into the break with the lead having come from behind against Newcastle.
It was a slow start from the hosts and they were punished accordingly, but Newcastle's opener only served to spark Chelsea into life and they dominated from that stage on to take a deserved lead into the break.
Newcastle's opener came through Dwight Gayle after just 12 minutes following a defensive mix-up from Chelsea, although it was the high pressing from the Magpies which forced the mistake.
Marcos Alonso's back-pass sold Courtois short, and the keeper was only able to nudge the ball into the path of Gayle under pressure from Murphy. That left Gayle with a simple finish into an empty net, stunning Stamford Bridge in the process.
That goal may have actually been a blessing in disguise for Chelsea, though, as they upped their game significantly after falling behind and were level again with 10 minutes.
Christensen hit the post moments before Hazard restored parity, with the Belgian firing an effort into the ground and bouncing past Darlow. Lejeune had failed to adequately clear his lines when cutting out a cross from Azpilicueta, but Hazard still had a lot to do.
Chelsea then completed their turnaround shortly after the half-hour mark when Morata converted a powerful Moses cross from close range.
Again Newcastle had the chance to deal with the danger with both Lejeune and Mbemba in front of Morata, but both appeared to duck under the ball rather than cutting it out and risking an own goal.
KICKOFF: Chelsea get us back underway for the second half at Stamford Bridge.
CHANCE! Crucial piece of defending from Mbema as he turns the ball over his own crossbar with Morata lurking. Christensen had played the ball through for Moses to deliver the cross, but this time Mbemba did make the interception.
Chelsea don't seem to be in any mood to hang about in this second half. They sense that this game is there for the taking, and they want to kill it off sooner rather than later.
Murphy swings a cross into the box which has Courtois a little concerned as it floats over his head, but there is no Newcastle man waiting to take advantage at the back post.
Newcastle have had a couple of promising attacking platforms in the last few minutes, but both of them have quickly been wasted. They need to be a lot more decisive and clinical in the final third if they are to drag themselves back into this match.
Chelsea patiently probe for another way through this Newcastle defence, and it just feels as though another breakthrough isn't a long way away.
CLOSE! The third almost comes via fortuitous means as Hazard hammers a shot towards goal which deflects off Clark and goes narrowly wide with Darlow having fully committed to the initial shot.
CHANCE! Another chance for Chelsea as Fabregas's pass is knocked down into the path of Hazard by Morata. Hazard shows incredible close control to break into the box and beat a couple of Newcastle defenders whilst somehow keeping his balance, but he eventually stumbles and Darlow is out to smother the ball.
Fabregas has been superb again today. The Spaniard has run the game from midfield and, while Hazard and Morata will be making the headlines as things stand, Fabregas's performance has been every bit as important.
NEWCASTLE SUB: A first change of the day for Newcastle sees Isaac Hayden replace Ayoze Perez.
Less than half an hour remaining in this match now, and Newcastle have done a good job of preventing the gap from growing any further. Chelsea have been the better team for the most part, but the Magpies are still in this one.
The Newcastle fans have not stopped making news all afternoon. The team has been in poor form of late, but that support has not wavered on the evidence of today. They certainly still back Rafael Benitez, with his name ringing around Stamford Bridge more often than it ever did when he was manager here.
CHANCE! Another chance for the hosts sees Azpilicueta swing an early cross into the box which Moses glances towards goal, but it is straight at Darlow.
SAVE! Hazard has looked most likely in this second half, and he comes close again here. He spins his marker in trademark fashion before trying to curl a low strike into the bottom corner, but Darlow makes the save and crucially holds on.
CHANCE! Hazard is again to ask the main questions of the Newcastle defence, darting forward from midfield before exchanging passes with Drinkwater, only to fail to get on the end of the return when he only had the keeper to beat.
Newcastle have not threatened Courtois's goal at all since breaking the deadlock. A one-goal deficit always puts them in with a chance, but it is hard to see where any goal will come from right now.
PENALTY TO CHELSEA!
GOAL! Chelsea 3-1 Newcastle (Eden Hazard, penalty)
Hazard has been sensational today, and he caps the performance off with a second goal of his own - this time an audacious Panenka from the Belgian.
The spot kick was an easy decision for the referee as Ritchie brought down Moses inside the area, and while Hazard's penalty was not exactly a textbook Panenka, Darlow guessed the wrong way.
NEWCASTLE SUB: Change for Newcastle in the aftermath of that goal as Jonjo Shelvey replaces Diame.
CHANCE! Big chance for Hazard to get his hat-trick! Morata slides the ball through for the Belgian, but once again he is denied by a brilliant stop from Darlow when trying another dinked finish.
CHELSEA SUBS: Double change for Chelsea here, and Hazard is one of those to make way. He and Fabregas are replaced by Willian and Tiemoue Bakayoko.
CHELSEA SUB: A third and final change for Chelsea as Gary Cahill replaces Christensen.
This has been a really good performance from Chelsea after their slow start, and it could have easily been more than 3-1. Darlow may have conceded three times, but he has kept the score down today with some big saves.
SAVE! Chelsea are queuing up inside the Newcastle box here! Morata does well on the edge before knocking the ball out to Alonso, whose powerful strike is parried away by Darlow.
NEWCASTLE SUB: A third and final change for Newcastle sees DeAndre Yedlin replace Merino.
Drinkwater almost gets in behind the defence from a long Kante pass, but Ritchie is back there to make an important interception inside his own area.
Newcastle are still pushing for a consolation in the closing stages, but this game is surely over now. It looks like being a deserved win for Chelsea.
CHANCE! Half a chance for Newcastle to get a goal back as Clark meets a corner, but he cannot keep his header down.
There will be three minutes of added time at the end of this match.
FULL TIME: Chelsea 3-1 Newcastle United
The full-time whistle goes at Stamford Bridge as Chelsea come from behind to beat Newcastle 3-1, drawing level with Manchester United ahead of their trip to Arsenal later this afternoon.
The gap to leaders Manchester City is also cut to eight points courtesy of the victory, which saw Dwight Gayle give Newcastle a shock early lead before a brace from the brilliant Hazard either side of a Morata header turned things around for the champions.
Right, that is all we have time for this afternoon!
Thank you very much for joining Sports Mole for today's early kickoff as Chelsea beat Newcastle United to move level on points with second-place Manchester United. I will leave you with our match report, and be sure to stick around for reaction too.
From me, though, it's goodbye for now!
