Newcastle United are looking to do something they have not done since December when they face Chelsea on Monday night.
Eddie Howe’s side travel to Stamford Bridge to take on the Blues, where they will aim to win back-to-back Premier League games for the first time since late 2023.
Since triumphing over Chelsea and Manchester United last year, Newcastle United have not won consecutive league games. However, they can change that on Monday after beating Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend.
The Magpies looked much better against Wolves, breezing past Gary O’Neil’s side thanks wonderous displays from Bruno Guimaraes and Fabian Schar. The returning Joe Willock also played his part.
Newcastle will be keen to go on a decent run now as they aim to qualify for Europe, but BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton believes Chelsea will prove to be another bump in the road.
Chris Sutton thinks Chelsea will beat Newcastle on Monday night
Sutton has predicted the results of every Premier League fixture this weekend for BBC Sport, and has tipped Chelsea to beat Newcastle 2-1. However, he does not have any confidence in his prediction.
“I could easily end up with zero points this week – and I am not expecting to pick up anything here either,” he wrote.
“How can anyone accurately predict Chelsea versus Newcastle, given the inconsistency we have seen from both teams recently?
“Which Chelsea team will turn up, and which Newcastle side will we see? The Magpies bounced back from a bad defeat at Arsenal by beating Wolves, but they have not won back-to-back league games since the start of December.
“I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve backed Chelsea at home, and been wrong, but surely they are going to win again at Stamford Bridge before the end of the season?
“I went with the law of averages when I picked a Newcastle home victory last week, so hopefully the same method will work again with Chelsea this time.”
Inconsistent Newcastle will want Chelsea revenge
In fairness to Sutton, he is not confident in his prediction. That is understandable, as both teams are incredibly difficult to pin down right now.
Both Newcastle and Chelsea have been inconsistent, and that is why they are where they are in the Premier League.
But Howe will believe his team should be higher up the league, and will have confidence that he can triumph over Chelsea like he did back in November. The Magpies were dominant that day, winning 4-1 at St James’ Park.
A repeat performance would be perfect for Newcastle, while it would also serve as revenge for what happened in the Carabao Cup quarter final earlier this season.
Two big mistakes by Kieran Trippier cost the Magpies that night, but he will not feature on Monday due to a calf injury.
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