England Premier League
Sunday 13th March 2022
Kick off at 2pm GMT
Venue: Stamford Bridge
Match Preview:
19 years ago Roman Abramovich bought Chelsea and since then the Blues have gone from a good team to a world class team, winning a plethora of trophies and being recognised as one of the best teams in world football. Abramovich has had to sell the club because of the Russian invasion of Ukraine leading to sanctions and this is what will be overshadowing everyone associated with the club. There are sanctions throughout the club, to selling new tickets, having food on sale on match days and the club shop having to close. With a monthly wage bill of £28m one could say Chelsea are in crisis, but how will this affect the players?
At this point in time Chelsea have reacted well and come into this game having won their last 4 games, they have also advanced to the quarter finals of the FA Cup and take a 2-0 lead to Lille in midweek in the Champions League. If anything there seems to be more pressure on Thomas Tuchel whose press conferences have gone from talking tactics to talking about the dreadful war.
Chelsea won’t be winning the league this season but they probably haven’t given up on trying to finish 2nd although for now it is all about protecting 3rd place. Arsenal in 4th are 8 points behind but do have 2 games in hand over Tuchel’s side. At home the club do not have a great record and from their total haul of 56 points only 23 have come at home. It is only one win in their last 4 games, although the others finished in draws and it must be noted that the Blues have only lost 1 game at here. It is just that 5 of their matches have ended in draws. Chelsea’s last home game finished in a solid 2-0 victory over Tottenham.
Newcastle could well be the new Chelsea as they were taken over by billionaires five months ago. Once they were able to splash the cash in January a great run started and the club haven’t lost now for 9 games. The Magpies have gone from 19th to 14th and have sprinted 10 points clear of the bottom three. Continue this run and one would have to wonder if Eddie Howe’s team have enough in them to finish in a European place?
The nine game run includes winning their last 3 in a row but this is the first real stern test the club have had in that run and it should be fascinating to see how this plays out.
Team News:
Chelsea: Marcos Alonso has a lack of match fitness and will be assessed. Cesar Azpilicueta is ill but a late decision will be made on him being included for this game. Callum Hudson-Odoi is out with an Achilles injury, Reece James has a muscle injury and could miss the next three weeks. Ben Chilwell is out for the season with a knee injury.
Newcastle: Bruno Guimaraes has a muscle injury though it isn’t expected to be serious but he will be assessed ahead of the game. Fernandez is a major doubt to return with a muscle injury but could be back next week. Joelinton is a doubt with a groin injury. Emil Krafth has a slight muscle injury and will be assessed. Allan Saint- Maximin missed the game in midweek with illness so remains touch and go to recover for this game. Fabian Schar should recover from a muscle injury in time and Kieran Trippier is a long term injury with his foot.
Chelsea vs Newcastle Head to Head:
Last season Chelsea won this fixture 2-0.
Chelsea have won 9 of the last 11 meetings against Newcastle.
It’s been almost 10 years since Newcastle beat Chelsea in London.
Chelsea vs Newcastle Prediction:
Newcastle are on a roll and on form they would be in 3rd place but the worry here is that they come into this game with a whole host of doubts and injuries. It will be worth checking the very final team news but 3-4 key players could be missing and that is a blow to any side. Of course they are facing a far superior team away from home although there is a lot of outside noise when it come to Chelsea at present.
What has been interesting is that Thomas Tuchel has adapted an us against them attitude. That is not to say he is angry with the sanctions, if anything he seems to fully understand but the club are still having their hands tied and there are a lot of people associated with the club that of course have absolutely nothing to do with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. It is a difficult time but we don’t see past Chelsea getting the result they need. The disappointment for us is that Chelsea are around 1.33 to win against one of the best in form sides in the league so there is no value in that and we should look into different markets.
Chelsea vs Newcastle Betting Tips:
Chelsea to win 2-0 or 2-1 at 6.00 and 8.00
Anytime goalscorer: Romelu Lukaku at 2.10
Anytime goalscorer: Kai Havertz at 2.25
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