Chelsea faced off against Newcastle United at St. James’ Park earlier today as they focused on securing maximum points on the road. Both sides fought tooth and nail in the first half but couldn’t make the decisive breakthrough as they went into the half-time interval with a goalless scoreline.
The West London outfit finally got their noses ahead in the 65th minute when Reece James found the back of the net with a great finish. It was James who doubled Chelsea’s advantage just 12 minutes later as he scored with a powerful strike before Jorginho made the points secure in the 81st minute when he successfully converted his penalty. The match ended with the Blues claiming a solid 3-0 win away at Tyneside.
Let’s take a look a how each Chelsea player performed during the clash against the Magpies.
GK: Edouard Mendy – 7/10
The talented keeper was hardly tested during the game and kept a comfortable clean sheet at the back.
CB: Andreas Christensen – 7.5/10
Christensen won multiple aerial duels and did what was required of him at the back. He even created a good chance going forward.
CB: Thiago Silva – 7/10
The Brazilian defender made two important interceptions and didn’t take too many chances with his clearances.
CB: Antonio Rudiger – 7/10
The German keeper kept a good defensive shape at the back and did enough to keep the Magpies frustrated throughout the 90 minutes.
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RM: Reece James – 10/10
James scored two stunning goals in the second half to win the game for Chelsea. He deserves the man of the match award.
CM: N’Golo Kante – 6/10
He got stuck in with some solid tackles but was quite ineffective in the opponent’s half. Kante got substituted after the hour mark.
CM: Jorginho – 7/10
The Italy international controlled the game well in midfield and kept his composure to successfully convert his penalty in the second half.
LM: Ben Chilwell – 7/10
Chilwell performed his defensive duties well and made two good chances in the final third.
RAM: Hakim Ziyech – 6/10
Ziyech wasted quite a few decent openings to find the back of the net. However, he deserves credit for creating a couple of chances in the final third.
LAM: Callum Hudson-Odoi – 8/10
Hudson-Odoi pulled off a few promising dribbles with the ball and created some excellent opportunities for others around him.
ST: Kai Havertz – 7.5/10
The German youngster caused a lot of problems for the Newcastle defenders but there was no goal for him today.
Substitutes:
CM: Ross Barkley – 6.5/10
He added some energy to Chelsea’s midfield.
CM: Ruben Loftus-Cheek – 6/10
Loftus-Cheek offered very little after coming on in the 63rd minute.
CM: Saul Niguez – N/A
He didn’t get enough minutes to warrant a rating.
