Premier League | Gameweek 36

May 11, 2025 at 12pm UK

St. James' Park

Newcastle vs Chelsea

Match preview

Another weekend of twists and turns is expected in the Premier League's thrilling race for the top five, with Newcastle hosting Chelsea in a bid to create some separation and potentially dent the Blues' Champions League aspirations.

The Magpies go into their penultimate home game in fourth place, level on 63 points with their weekend opponents, although they could finish higher or lower.

With second-placed Arsenal taking their eye off the ball domestically, Newcastle find themselves four points adrift of Mikel Arteta's men, who travel to champions Liverpool this weekend before hosting Eddie Howe's men next week.

While Arsenal (67 points) and Manchester City (64) can still be overtaken, the Magpies could slip further down the table given the positions of Chelsea (63), Nottingham Forest (61) and Aston Villa (60).

Despite the risk of slipping out of the top five this weekend, especially considering they have dropped points in two of their last three top-flight games - a 4-1 defeat at Aston Villa and a 1-1 draw at Brighton & Hove Albion - the Toon Army have reason to be optimistic going into Sunday's clash with Chelsea.

Only Liverpool (46 points) have amassed more points than Newcastle (43) in their last 20 league games, a tally that has been boosted by their admirable form at St James' Park, where they have won five on the bounce, scoring three or more goals in four of those victories over Forest (4-3), Manchester United (4-1), Crystal Palace (5-0) and relegated Ipswich Town (3-0).

Given that the hosts have won seven of their last 11 Premier League home games against Chelsea, who they also knocked out in the fourth round of the EFL Cup this season, the Geordies, who have seen Howe win the three meetings with the Blues on Tyneside by an aggregate score of 7-1, will be backing their side to end the West Londoners' winning run.

However, the travelling support will feel they have a better chance of success going into Sunday's clash than they did a month ago.

After a prolonged post-Christmas slump that saw Maresca's men slip from title contenders to nervous Champions League contenders, the Londoners have shown signs of life once again, as evidenced by a three-match league winning streak that culminated in Cole Palmer's apparent resurrection in a 3-1 victory over an admittedly much-changed and less motivated Liverpool side in week 35.

The Blues, whose current run in the top flight is their longest since five wins over Leicester City (2-1), Aston Villa (3-0), Southampton (5-1), Tottenham Hotspur (4-3) and Brentford (2-1) between November and December, have picked up two victories on the continent to make it five in a row in all competitions.

The first of those victories came in a dramatic comeback at Fulham on 20 April, when the Conference League finalists needed Tyrique George's 83rd-minute equaliser and Pedro Neto's second-half strike to beat their west London neighbours and record their first away league win since 8 December.

The Blues, who had won at Leicester and Southampton before beating Spurs, had endured a frustrating eight-game run without maximum points away from home, losing five and failing to score in five.

With the Fulham win acting as a catalyst for that run of form, Maresca, who is hoping to lead Chelsea back into the Champions League after a two-year absence, will be looking for back-to-back away wins for the first time in five months to avoid slipping out of the coveted Champions League spots.

Recent Performance

Newcastle United Premier League form:WWWLWD

Chelsea Premier League form:WDDWWW

Chelsea form (all competitions):LWWWWW

Team News

Having already lost club captain Jamaal Lascelles to a long-term knee injury and Lewis Hall (foot) for the rest of the season, Howe's revelation that Joelinton could also miss the trip to Newcastle was the worst news the Toon Army could have received.

While Matt Targett (hamstring) is expected to miss out, Fabian Schar's availability is uncertain and the hosts could turn to Sven Botman to partner Dan Burn at centre-back if the Swiss defender is unavailable.

Although Alexander Isak has scored five fewer goals than Mohamed Salah (28), the 23-goal forward is level on goals with the Liverpool star (24-25), underlining the importance of the Swede's contributions.

No player has scored more home goals than the Magpies' all-time top scorer (12), whose 23-goal tally accounts for 34.8% of the club's 66 top-flight goals, a ratio bettered only by Forest's Chris Wood, whose 19 goals account for 35.2% of the Tricky Trees' 54 strikes.

Although the Blues are not Isak's favourite opponents in English football, the Swede has scored in his last four appearances against Chelsea in all competitions and will be keen to extend that run.

While Marc Guiu is unlikely to start, the youngster's possible return to the squad could give Chelsea an extra option off the bench, especially given the recent absence of Christopher Nkunku.

Wesley Fofana (hamstring) is out for the season after undergoing surgery, while back-up defender Aaron Anselmino, who was unlikely to make the trip to Tyneside, is out with a similar problem.

Barring a setback for the injury-prone Romeo Lavia, Maresca could stick with an unchanged line-up for the third successive league game, with Chelsea player of the season Moises Caicedo at full-back and free to drift into midfield when the Blues have the ball.

Palmer, who ended a 12-game goal drought with an outstanding performance against Liverpool, could score in consecutive league games for the first time since January as he looks to add to his tally of 15 Premier League strikes.

Possible starting lineup

Newcastle United possible starting lineup:

Pope; Trippier, Schar, Burn, Livramento; Guimaraes, Tonali, Willock; Murphy, Isak, Gordon

Chelsea possible starting lineup:

Sanchez; Caicedo, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Lavia, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Madueke; Jackson