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Newcastle United moved up to third in the Premier League table with a 2-0 victory over Champions League qualification rivals Chelsea.
Sandro Tonali handed the Magpies the lead inside the opening two minutes before Chelsea were reduced to 10 men through Nicolas Jackson’s red card. Despite United’s extra man advantage, it was nervy second-half until Bruno Guimaraes added a second right at the death.
Eddie Howe was forced into two changes from last Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion. Kieran Trippier (calf) and Joe Willock (knee) dropped out and were replaced by Sven Botman and Anthony Gordon.
There were just two minutes on the clock when Newcastle took the lead. Tonali robbed Romeo Lavia of possession before the ball made its way out to the right-hand side, where the Italian advanced into the box to direct Jacob Murphy’s cross home.
Chelsea were beginning to get a foothold but were dealt a huge blow when Nicolas Jackson was shown a red card in the 35th minute for an elbow on Botman. John Brooks initially awarded a yellow card but VAR sent the referee to the pitch side monitor and he changed his decision.
Despite being a man down, Chelsea largely dominated the second-half but two important saves by Nick Pope kept them at bay. Guimaraes then confirmed the three points in the 90th minute when his deflected shot beat goalkepeer Roberto Sanchez.
Our writer Jordan Cronin was at St James’ Park - and here are his Newcastle United player ratings:
9. Bruno Guimaraes - 8
Played a role in Newcastle’s opener with a well weighted pass out to Jacob Murphy. Oozed calmness when on the ball. Wonderful way to cap off his afternoon by scoring. | AFP via Getty Images
10. Harvey Barnes - 5.5
Huffed and puffed but didn’t really test the Chelsea goalkeeper. Heavy first touch stopped him from making it 2-0. | AFP via Getty Images
11. Anthony Gordon - 6
Picked up where he left off at Brighton by showing real intent in the opening stages but couldn’t maintain it. Made way for Emil Krafth on 65 minutes. | Getty Images
12. Alexander Isak - 5
Very quiet - not the first time that’s been written in recent weeks. | Getty Images