Jose Mourinho still doesn’t have a league win at St. James Park, with Newcastle trotting out 2-0 winners after some brilliant late-match finishing. The win lifts the Magpies into ninth in the Premier League, at least temporarily, while Chelsea must wait to see how Liverpool and Spurs fare to know where they stand.
The first half was a rather dull affair. Alan Pardew’s mission seemed to be to frustrate the visitors, but Chelsea did a good job of that all on their own, misplacing passes and not doing much to threaten Tim Krul’s goal. The best moment came around the 40th minute. A corner kick from Chelsea forced a goal line clearance from Davide Santon, which set Newcastle on a fast break. The ball came up the middle to Moussa Sissoko on the left. He threaded his shot through the legs of Ramires, but a diving Petr Cech was able to save.
The second half, however, literally brought a tear to Pardew’s eye. Yohan Cabaye sent in a positively delightful free kick. Yoan Gouffran escaped the Chelsea defense, diving in to get his head on the ball. Cech was rooted to the spot, only able to watch as Newcastle celebrated the opening goal.
With twenty minutes left to play, it seemed likely Chelsea would be able to get themselves back into it. The visitors had a great chance -- make that chances -- in the 80th minute, when Krul did well to save an attempt from substitute Willian. Samuel Eto’o, also on as a substitute, got a foot on the rebound, but Mathieu Debuchy did well to knock it out for a corner. Immediately after, Chelsea’s final sub, Andre Schurrle, went just wide with a header.
Instead of the mighty Blues pulling out a late game result, Newcastle managed to double their lead. Vurnon Anita, running up the left hand side, slid the ball over to Loic Remy in the center. The Frenchman put in a lovely curling shot, which hit the post and bounced into the back of the net. Once again, Cech had no chance.
Newcastle: Krul, Debuchy, Williamson, Yanga-Mbiwa, Santon, Sissoko, Tiote (Anita 53), Cabaye, Gouffran (Obertan 85), Shola Ameobi (Cisse 62), Remy
Subs not used: Elliot, Tavernier, Sammy Ameobi, Ben Arfa
Goals: Gouffran 68; Remy 89
Chelsea: Cech; Ivanovic, D Luiz, Terry (c), Cole; Ramires, Lampard (Schurrle 70); Mata (Willian 62), Oscar, Hazard; Torres (Eto’o 62)
Subs not used: Schwarzer, Azpilicueta, Cahill, Mikel