Chelsea should be wary of a motivated Newcastle United
By Durim Halimi
Chelsea are superior opponents, but Newcastle United are fully capable of ending the Blues’ hot start to the season.
Newcastle United and Chelsea have experienced two different starts to the 2018-19 Premier League campaign. Newcastle earned a point from their first two matches and have already displayed their inconsistency on the road against Cardiff City. Chelsea, on the other end, have scored six goals in their first two matches as they claimed two impressive victories.
This Sunday will see the London-based side travel to Tyneside for what should be an entertaining match against Newcastle at St. James’ Park. Chelsea will be the favorites to win this clash on paper, but the Magpies will challenge the Blues for 90 minutes.
Chelsea have been successful under Maurizio Sarri to start the new season, but Rafa Benitez will find ways to motivate his players for this match. With that being said, can Newcastle pull of an upset against a strong Chelsea side?
Rebounding From Cardiff City
Over the weekend, Newcastle departed from South Wales with one point as they played Cardiff City to a 0-0 draw with ten men. The Magpies could have claimed three points, but Kenedy’s penalty kick was saved in the 95th minute of stoppage time.
Overall, Newcastle looked like a mediocre side that was not fully motivated to go up against a newly-promoted club so early in the season. As a result, Cardiff City outplayed Newcastle in every category except for shots on target.
Rafa Benitez was clearly upset with his players, but claimed that a point away from home in the second match of the season should be perceived positively. With the Cardiff City match in the books, Benitez will look to motivate his players for a crucial match against Chelsea this weekend.
Seeing that Newcastle have to face Manchester City (away) and Arsenal (home) immediately after playing Chelsea, it should not be difficult for the Magpies to realize that points will be hard to earn. Urgency and motivation should not be a problem for Newcastle in this match. The key to success will be creating a passing rhythm offensively and avoiding unforced errors in the back when pressured.
New Lineup?
Benitez has often said that he does not like to reveal his lineup too early ahead of a match. Instead, the Spaniard prefers to keep his players hungry for playing time until the conclusion of the final training session. Thus far, the Spaniard has been conservative with his lineup selections by sticking with the players he deployed most of last season.
This weekend, however, could see Benitez alter his scheme and lineup which would place Chelsea at a disadvantage due to Newcastle’s potential unpredictability. Heading into the third week of Premier League action, it is time for Benitez to give his new signings full debuts in every position.
Away Test for Chelsea
This will not be Chelsea’s first away match of the season, but it will be their first real test on the road. Chelsea opened the campaign with a thrashing 3-0 victory over Huddersfield Town at the Kirklees Stadium, but it will not be that easy against Newcastle.
The final match of last season saw Newcastle defeat Chelsea 3-0 at home. While that may not be the case this weekend, it at least shows that Newcastle have done it before. Chelsea have quality players that can lead a deadly attack and the Magpies must be prepared for a few quick breakaways.
With that being said, supporters of both clubs can expect plenty of intensity and big chances in this match. If Newcastle can feed off of the energy from their home supporters and not be hesitant to attack, then they stand a good chance against Chelsea.