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Newcastle United look to stun Chelsea tomorrow

By Durim Halimi

LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 09: General view inside the stadium prior to the Checkatrade Trophy Third Round match between Chelsea U21 and Peterborough United at Stamford Bridge on January 09, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - JANUARY 09: General view inside the stadium prior to the Checkatrade Trophy Third Round match between Chelsea U21 and Peterborough United at Stamford Bridge on January 09, 2019 in London, England. (Photo by Alex Burstow/Getty Images) /
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Newcastle United will be the underdogs tomorrow, but they will play to win as they are in dire need of three points.

Newcastle United will be in London tomorrow to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The Magpies head into this match as the underdogs and a victory is unlikely, but it is not an impossible outcome for the visitors. The last time Newcastle won at Stamford Bridge was in 2012 thanks to Papiss Cisse who scored twice to steal three points. It would be rude to mention that result and not share his amazing goal from distance.

Good times, good times. Now, back to reality. Chelsea will look to inch closer to Tottenham in the table, but the only way to do that is by defeating Newcastle. The Blues are enjoying a solid season with 13 victories, five draws and three losses, but they lost to Leicester City and drew with Southampton in their last two home games – two results that should give Newcastle some hope.

Newcastle Must Stay Focused

If Newcastle can stay focused, among many other things, then they will have a chance to be competitive in this match. Too many distractions are surrounding Newcastle as the club is supposedly in the midst of a takeover and the rumor mill is brewing with the January transfer window now open.

The Magpies are also fighting against time as multiple players, primarily Federico Fernandez and Jonjo Shelvey, are doing their best to be at full strength for this difficult match. Regardless of who plays, Newcastle must go into this match the way they did against Everton and Watford on the road. Both of those matches ended in 1-1 draws in hostile environments on the road and a big reason why Newcastle stole points was because of their balanced style of play.

We can surely expect Rafa Benitez to deploy a cautious, defensive formation against one of the league’s top dogs, but being too defensive for too long will only invite the inevitable goal. Newcastle have a gem in Salomon Rondon up top who is on track to score in double-digit figures and they must feed him the ball with several crosses from the wings. The only way Newcastle stand a chance at earning a positive result tomorrow is if they spread the ball out wide and force Chelsea’s back-line to create gaps as they follow the ball down the flank.

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Due to Chelsea’s impressive defensive record at home, though, scoring a goal might seem like an insurmountable challenge for Newcastle. The Blues have only conceded eight goals at home this season, but Newcastle play their best football when they are on the road. Anything can happen tomorrow, but a realistic expectation is a 2-0 victory for the home side. I hope I am wrong!