Nike Ames’ report has landed, and the Arsenal v Liverpool game is about to start.
So I’ll say my farewells.
Thanks for sticking with me and for letting me know I’m not the only one baffled by daylight savings!
Best to you all!
I was wondering if anyone was going to call me out for this blatant gaffe.
Colin Young wasn’t going to let me go.
Hi Daniel, much as I am hoping my club Arsenal CAN make it a clean sweep,
I’m enjoying even more that you don’t appear to include Spurs as a ‘London Club’ in your post.Thanks for that, made my day so far! COYG!
Apologies to all Spurs fans. I promise I didn’t discount you deliberately.
So, to correct my previous statement: it’s been a good day for (most) London clubs.
Updated
They’ve just shown the Palmer pass in the build up to the Jackson goal and tell you what, it’s proper good!
Get a load of this:
"I love watching this kid."
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 27, 2024
Roy Keane takes a closer look at that Cole Palmer pass 🤩 pic.twitter.com/3RKgOkRvFh
It’s a good day for London clubs so far:
Crystal Palace 1-0 Tottenham
West Ham 2-1 Manchester United
Can Arsenal make it a clean sweep later?
Full-time! Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle
Chelsea hold on and move up to fourth! Jackson on the scoresheet, Palmer too in a player of the match show, it wasn’t always pretty but that victory ticks a lot of boxes.
90+8 min: They’re still playing and Newcastle are still trying to deliver a ball into the box. They manage to do so and James keeps Chelsea ahead at the death! A wonderful diagonal finds Willock at the far post and his head across the face of goal is intercepted by James who heads it out for a corner. Can Newcastle steal a draw? Pope goes up.
90+7 min: Chelsea’s defence holds firm. That is surely that.
90+6 min: Last minute of added time. Nkunku again in the thick of it. He commits a foul just inside his own half. Newcastle with one final chance to hoof the ball into the mixer.
90+3 min: Nkunku is booked for an ugly hack on Guimaraes. Maresca is furious! He thought his man won the ball. The manager is booked too. What a scrappy end to this game.
90+1 min: VAR overturns the penalty decision! So surely Nkunku should be booked for diving? Longstaff is booked for arguing too vociferously. Anyway, justice prevails and Newcastle have a glimmer of hope still.
Hooper is going over to the screen. I’d be floored if he doesn’t reconsider his decision after another look.
If this sticks it will be one of the softest penalty decisions I’ve seen. Nkunku was held, no doubt, but there’s no way Burn’s soft touch had enough force to bundle him over.
Updated
89 min: Simon Hooper points to the penalty spot! Nkunku goes down after Palmer’s cute touch unleashed him. Burn lunged at him but is there enough contact for this to be upheld?
88 min: Neto is booked for a late challenge. Joeltinton, who was Newcastle’s best player, is subbed. So is Hall. On come Osula and Kelly.
87 min: Nkunku has a chance on the edge of the box. Nope, he doesn’t take it, instead he takes a touch, then another, then another. He simply doesn’t want to shoot with his left. But rather than pass he dallies and eventually the ball is lost. His teammates weren’t too impressed with that.
85 min: Chelsea get a free-kick in their own half and they are in no rush to take it. They really are crawling their way to the finish line. Neto gets a sniff inside Newcastle’s box after a few lucky bounces, but he can’t latch onto the loose ball. Newcastle come again.
83 min: As if to prove that Chelsea are looking anxiously at the clock, Sanchez is booked for time wasting.
81 min: Livramento and Murphy combine for a neat one-two down the right flank and the former is tearing down the touchline. Defenders rally so Newcastle have to slow things down. They lack the precision to work their way through the wall of blue and in a flash Chelsea are in Newcastle’s box. Palmer is again pulling the strings and eventually it lands for Mudryk who shoots but straight at Pope.
78 min: Palmer makes an interception on half-way and rather than rush his delivery forward, he slows things down. Again, that’s fantastic from the youngster who seems to move at a different pace to everyone else. As a result Chelsea can enjoy a spell of possession and regain some control.
77 min: Gusto leaves the pitch for Cucurella. Jackson also makes way. On comes Nkunku. Chelsea are holding on a bit here and seem ragged. Newcastle, with a bit of bravery and accuracy, can still nick a result.
74 min: Isak has blown a golden chance! What has happened there! He was put through on goal. Admittedly he was wide and had to do some work. A step-over saw him ease past Sanchez but now thew angle was really acute. So he cuts back towards the middle of the box. Rather than pass to Longstaff he tries to find the room to shoot which gives Caicedo the opportunity to slide in and tackle. It bobbles out for a corner but that should be 2-2.
Updated
72 min: Tell you what, since I wrote off Newcastle they’ve dominated possession. Guimaraes is seeing more of the ball, though that hopeful diagonal was always going to bobble away for a goal kick.
Lavia is hooked and replaced by Enzo Hernandez. That’s a good change for Chelsea who could do with a bit of spark.
70 min: Newcastle have managed just one shot all game. I’m struggling to see what their plan is, beyond trying to counter when Chelsea press forward. More limbs in the middle might help.
As I type that, though, Isak headers towards goal and James has to make a timely block. Brilliant ball from Murphy after being set loose by Joelinton on the left.
67 min: Schar chooses to aim for the top corner closest to the keeper but it was always going over. A pretty weak effort to be honest.
Chelsea make a change as Mudryk replaces Madueke.
Newcaslte have made three changes. Almiron, Tonali and Barnes make way. Murphy, Longstaff and Willock enter the scene.
65 min: Oooh, there’s a clash off the ball as Hall is bundled over by Madueke – who gets booked – and Newcastle have a free-kick in a promising position. It’s around 35 yards out just off centre of the goal. A perfect place for any right-footer.
Updated
64 min: Ah, Barnes makes a mess of a great opportunity. A big pass out to the left finds him in space. He has an option of a runner to his outside but chooses to cut infield to work the short. His touch is heavy so he needs another one, but that’s heavy as well. In the end he commits a foul.
Tonali then acts like a child, delaying a quick free kick from Chelsea, and gets booked.
62 min: Another long ball, this time from James, comes to nothing. Have Newcastle decided to drop a little deeper in the hope of springing a counter? The game has fallen into a lull, or is this the calm before the storm? Both teams taking stock before their substitutes perhaps?
60 min: Joelinton again drops deep and serves as a conduit between attack and defence. He almost sparks a move upfield but Chelsea do win it back and now they’re forming something inside Newcastle territory. The Magpies have dropped deeper now, forcing Chelsea to play around them. The plan works. Chelsea lose their patience and a speculative long ball hands possession over.
58 min: Joelinton drops very deep, almost at left back, to help out. It works. Newcastle keep possession and work their way through Chelsea’s high press. Isak gets the ball and takes it to the byline where he dinks in a dangerous cross that requires James to intervene with a clearing header. Better from Newcastle and perhaps a sign that it’s simply a case of supplying more bodies where they’re needed.
55 min: Newcastle need to get a grip in midfield. They’re still set up in a 4-3-3. Maybe they need to match Chelsea’s 4-2-3-1? Again they give the ball away and Madueke has it on the right flank. He holds onto it before trying to slide in Gusto on an overlap, but it’s just a touch overcooked and out for a goal kick.
53 min: The Newcastle goal is getting peppered! Gusto cuts onto his left and fires a shot. It’s well wide, but the Magpies are falling apart. Their midfield is nonexistent at present.
51 min: Again Newcastle lose it on halfway and Chelsea break. Jackson is leading the charge but a sloppy touch on the edge of the box slows things down. He plays a ball to his right for Madueke who has to check his run. But rather than pass, the winger opts to cut onto his left foot and shoot. It’s a tame effort and Pope gathers it as it bobbles along the turf.
49 min: Neto headers against the post! Madueke and Caicedo combine well down the right and when the cross is delivered deep, Neto rises and meets it with a stiff header. He did so well to climb above his marker but got unlucky. An inch or two to the right and he’d have found the net.
GOAL! Chelsea 2-1 Newcastle (Palmer, 46)
It had to be him! What a player! What a season he’s having! Newcastle give the ball away cheaply on half-way and Palmer picks it up and runs towards goal. He keeps going, they back off him. A short shift onto his left and he hammers it towards the near post. Maybe Pope should have got down in time but you know what, that was thumped! That’s his seventh of the season and Chelsea have the lead again 75 seconds after the restart.
Updated
We’re back. Can either side pull clear?
G’Day D.G,
G’day to you, Chris Paraskevas.
(Don’t ask what time it is).
I won’t. Glad you also think daylight savings is silly.
You’re all worried about VAR but the true crime against football (and my retinas) is Chelsea’s holographic badge.
As much as I’ve seen some shocking lows as a Newcastle fan, at hours that make Daylight Saving and the rotation of the planet irrelevant (e.g. Bowyer-Dyer Title Fight), I’ve never seen anything as visually offensive as the current Chelsea badge and kit.
Nice finish from Isak by the way. I’m off to find more caffeine.
Good luck with the caffeine run and thanks for the message. For what it’s worth I am actually on Team VAR. But I agree, I’m not a fan of that Chelsea strip, though it does earn points for the absence of a sponsor on the front.
Once again we’re talking about VAR.
Justin Kavanagh thinks we;’re heading down a path the leads to players getting electrocuted on the pitch:
The offside rule is getting ridiculous and this constant reversion to VAR to measure whiskers is taking both the mickey and the joy out of football. Soon, some training-ground guru is going to put tracker GPS on strikers or administer shocks to the body beyond the offside line, similar to the invisible fence technology that keeps dogs in their place. Stay… stay Cole… now go, go fetch boy!
Half-time: Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle
That’ll do after Newcastle fail to test Sanchez from that free-kick. It was a tame 10 minute to bring that half to a close but the preceding action was lively. Chelsea thought they had the lead when Palmer slid one into the far corner, but he was ruled off-side. Then Jackson scored, but Isak did likewise. Honours even at the break.
45+7 min: Newcastle will get a final chance before half-time to deliver a decent ball into the box after Gusto flies in and makes a reckless challenge. Hall stands over it from the left flank.
45+6 min: Colwill leaves a bit on Isak right before the break. It’s not a foul, but they do need to bring play to a momentary halt.
45+5 min: Pope does well this time to hold on to Palmer’s corner. Clear plan from Chelsea to test Pope on set pieces. Every ball they’ve played in has teased the keeper, inviting him to either punch or grab it.
45+3 min: James’ corner is nudged out for another corner. Newcastle have yet to concede from a corner all season. Can they hold out til the end of the half? Palmer’s in-swinger is right on Pope and he punches it out for another corner.
45+2 min: Good from Jackson has he holds it up and then plays a ball on the half-turn. Madueke offers width and then feeds Gusto on the overlap. His clipped ball to the back post is headed out for a corner.
44 min: Neto has pulled out a good ol’ fashioned dive. He didn’t sell anyone with that one. Rather than receive a free-kick on halfway, it’s a Newcastle throw. Joelinton, though, does get a freekick and Newcastle build again from the back.
43 min: It’s getting heated! First Lavia and Barnes hack at each other. Then Pope comes tearing out of his box to sweep up a long ball but in doing so takes out Jackson on the canter.
Updated
41 min: Another shot from Neto. This time he forces a save from Pop after it take a deflection from outside the box. It still required saving and a diving effort kept it out and behind for a corner.
40 min: Palmer sparks another move after a slick nutmeg in the middle of the park. It’s then moved on to Madueke who cuts infield from the right. Rather than shoot he feeds Neto who checks once, twice, and then lets fly, but a great block Livramento sees it out for a corner.
38 min: James is biffed by Almiron on halfway and the Newcastle forward gets a stern word from the ref. Chelsea have responded well since the goal. They’re a bit more controlled in possession with Lavia seeing more of it in central midfield.
36 min: I said this had all the ingredients of a proper ding-dong battle, and that’s what we’ve got so far. Chelsea nick the ball off Newcastle and the space opens for Caicedo on the edge of the box, but his shot is sliced and ends up well wide.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-1 Newcastle (Isak, 34)
He’s onside! The check is over and the goal stands. A well worked move on the right of Chelsea’s box has Hall firing in a low ball across the face of the goal that takes out the keeper and two defenders. Isak is there to knock it home.
Updated
Has Fofana’s right boot kept Isak onside? It’s a long delay. I think he’s off.
We’re level! Or are we? They’re checking if Isak strayed offside before bundling in a goal.
Updated
31 min: It’s end to end! I can barely keep up. Now Newcastle have a corner and Isak gets away from his marker, but he can’t get his head around the ball enough and his effort from the near post goes wide.
29 min: Palmer delivers a wicked corner that forces Pope to punch from his own line. But Newcastle get a let-off when Fofana commits a silly foul.
27 min: Three Newcastle shots serve as a reminder that they won’t lie down. The first two – from Isak and Tonali – are blocked. Almiron gets his through the defensive wall but Sanchez saves easily. It all started with a great ball forward for Isak who then showed some neat footwork to hold up play in time for his mates to arrive in support.
26 min: Gusto, from inside the box, can’t connect with his first time shot as he runs onto a deep cross from Neto. He had the time and space, but slipped just as he attempted a side-footer.
25 min: Chelsea are camped inside Newcastle’s territory. Palmer is pulling the strings with Madueke offered loads of space to shoot, but it’s blocked. They come again. A cross just evades Jackson but Newcastle can’t escape. James and Gusto are effectively playing in the midfield they’re so advanced.
22 min: Schar is booked for clattering Palmer. Neto then crunches a first time shot from the edge of the box straight at Pope. It’s all Chelsea right now.
22 min: You’ll want to find a replay of that Chelsea goal simply to see Palmer’s pass. It could well be a contender for the ball of the season so far. He won’t get the assist but it made the goal.
20 min: Guimaraes finds Almiron with a slick through ball forward towards the edge of the box. Almiron takes a decent first touch but his second is woeful and the shot bobbles wide.
GOAL! Chelsea 1-0 Newcastle (Jackson, 19)
No doubt this time! Brilliant from Chelsea. A wonder ball from Palmer from deep in his own half, having wriggled the room for himself, finds Neto on the gallop down the left. Suddenly it’s a two on two and Neto played in the perfect pass for Jackson in the middle of the box and his finish was stiff and accurate. Excellent counter attack from Chelsea.
Updated
18 min: Both sides are living dangerously. Snachez’s pass upfield is intercepted but Isak couldn’t sort his feet out in time to captalise. Then Jackson is given the freedom to run but a late intervention sees out the danger.
16 min: Guimaraes goes down in the box after bursting through a wall of blue shirts. He’s told to get up but he looked convinced. He’s struggling to get back up and is met with a chorus of boos. Oh, he was definitely clipped, but it was outside the box. Which means VAR can’t get involved. Newcastle would have taken the free-kick though.
15 min: Reece clips in the corner which is headed away, but only as far as Neto on the edge of the box who volleys first time. That looked good but was met with a firm block.
14 min: Hall’s in-swinger is too deep and Chelsea deal with it. But Newcastle come back with Barnes. Then Chelsea counter and win a corner of their own as Neto’s cross from the byline is deflected out.
13 min: Joelinton has been lively. A strong run down the right wins his side a corner.
10 min: Chelsea’s press is functioning so well and they pinch the ball back from Newcastle’s back four. But Joelinton returns the favour and launches a counter from inside Chelsea’s half. They can’t work a decent chance – just a pop shot from range that’s deflected safely to Sanchez - and there’s a break as Fofan requires some medical attention.
Updated
8 min: A huge let off for Newcastle who now settle with some time on the ball. But Chelsea press them and almost win it back in the final third.
Palmer’s goal is chalked off! He was off by a whisker. What a shame, that finish deserved a goal.
Updated
It’s so tight. I think he might be just a touch off.
NO GOAL! Chelsea 0-0 Newcastle
So simple! And who else but Palmer. A perfect run from the inside left channel is found by Jackson and he’s away. All he has to do is slide it into the far corner and he does so with ease. Oh, but they’re checking it…. was he offside? Yes he was! No goal!
Updated
3 min: Jackson collects a ball around halfway and takes a brilliant first touch as he spins away from his man and startsc antering upfield. A short pass to his right finds Madueke who opens his body but it’s a tame shot and Pope saves.
1 min: An early touch for Pope. A cross from Madueke on the right is snaffled by the ‘keeper.
Updated
And we’re off!
The players are out and Stamford Bridge looks a picture!
Chelsea in their royal blue, Newcastle in their black and white stripes.
This feels like a proper Premier League bout!
Chelsea fans, what do you make of Nicolas Jackson?
A goal or two today could bring a few more doubters on his side. But another tough day in what has been described as a ‘faltering start’ to the season could heap more pressure on the lad and force his manager to make a tough decision moving forward.
We’ve got out first mail of the day from Eric Peterson on the other side of the Atlantic.
Good morning from Pittsburgh! Slogging through the most annoying weekend of my Premier League season: when the UK departs daylight savings time and the USA has yet to do so. This totally upsets my established Sunday rhythm of the Premier League dovetailing with the NFL. Annoying. With this comes the inevitable anxious lap around this website’s sports links wondering why I can’t find the doggone link to the early MBM - because it won’t be put online for another hour, Eric. Sigh. Year after year. I never learn. The highest-quality pranks, Halloween or otherwise, self-inflicted or not, are the inadvertent ones.
Eric, we are one and the same. Coming from a country that doesn’t bother with daylight savings, I still can’t get my head around this ridiculous approach. I don’t care if it helps the farmers. It does my head in!
In news that will surprise absolutely no one, Roy Keane supports Enzo Maresca publicly calling out Reece James.
"What's the problem with saying that?"
— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 27, 2024
Roy Keane shares his thoughts on Enzo Maresca saying he wants to see more from Reece James 💭 pic.twitter.com/PCa5QxLHdI
Jonathan Liew speaks with Marcel Desailly.
Does that need a hard sell?
Trust me, this is a cracking piece thanks to two legends in their field.
If you thought I wasn’t going to share this goal again, you were very much mistaken.
An absolute worldie from 2012 from one of my favourite players in the league’s history.
It’s been a week of managers publicly blasting their players.
OK, maybe blasting is a bit strong. But both Eddie Howe and Enzo Maresca have singled out big players and have asked them to pull up their socks.
Maresca said he “expected more” from Reece James, adding that the Blues’ dressing room lacked a “proper leader”. Yeowch!
Meanwhile, Howe told Alexander Isak to “focus on football” as the out-of-form Swedish striker unsure on his future at the club.
With an average age of 23 years and 220 days, Chelsea’s starting XI across the season is the youngest in Premier League history.
They’re currently ahead of David O’Leary’s Leeds who finished third in 2000 with an average starting XI aged 24 years and 162 days.
Newcastle team
Two changes as well for Newcastle from their last outing.
They’re both on the wings with Jacob Murphy making way for Miguel Almiron on the left.
Big news on the right. Anthony Gordon is out with a groin injury and is replaced by Harvey Barnes.
Newcastle: Pope; Livramento, Schar, Burn, Hall; Tonali, Guimaraes, Joelinton; Almiron, Isak, Barnes.
Subs: Odysseas, Ruddy, Krafth, Osula, Murphy, Kelly, Willock, Longstaff, Miley.
HOWAY NEWCASTLE. 👊 pic.twitter.com/G9B6omkflM
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) October 27, 2024
Chelsea team
Two changes to the side that lost to Liverpool last week.
Wesley Fofana comes into the back four in place of Tosin Adarabioyo. In midfield, Pedro Neto replaces Jadon Sancho on the left.
Chelsea: Sanchez; James, Fofana, Colwill, Gusto; Lavia, Caicedo; Madueke, Palmer, Neto; Jackson.
Subs: Jorgensen, Tosin, Veiga, Cucurella, Enzo, Mudryk, Sancho, Felix, Nkunku.
Your Sunday team news is here. 🗞️👇#CFC | #CHENEW pic.twitter.com/0UCfmwN8jQ
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) October 27, 2024
Preamble
On paper, this looks like a cracking contest. Two flawed but enterprising teams, both filled with attacking talent and the ever-present risk of implosion. If you’re a neutral this is exactly what you want for the Sunday 2pm slot under gorgeous blue skies in London.
Both Chelsea and Newcastle are also after redemption. The Blues went down 2-1 to Liverpool last time out in the league while the Mapgies suffered a shock 1-0 reverse at home to Brighton.
Chelsea, currently seventh, could move up to fourth above Arsenal (at least temporarily). Newcastle have had a pretty shambolic start to their campaign and will be desperate for at least a point that would lift them into the top half of the table. A defeat, though, could see them finish the weekend in 13th.
To be frank, anything other than a Chelsea win would come as a surprise. The Blues have not lost a home league game to Newcastle since 2012 and the visitors have struggled for goals recently. But, as the great F1 commentator Murray Walker famously quipped, anything can happen and it usually does.
Kick-off at 2pm BST. Lineups and more news to come.
