AFTER arriving at Stamford Bridge in July charged with turn the club around, consider it mission accomplished for Mauricio Pochettino.
Because a smidgeon under five months Pochettino has indeed transformed Chelsea…into Spursy.
Soft-centred replicas of his old club who promise much then find a way to shoot themselves in the foot.
A four-goal win over, ironically, Tottenham and a 4-4 draw against Manchester City before the international break had seen many claim the billionaire Blues were on the march.
The wiser heads, the ones not suckered in by one – or two – swallows and all that, put their foot on the ball a little. There was still a hint of the emperor’s new clothes about it all.
And boy, weren’t they proved right at St James’ Park, because for all the injury-hit Toon were terrific, Chelsea were frankly diabolical.
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Bear in mind that Newcastle were missing nigh on a full team of players. A casualty list that hit double figures saw Eddie How name three keepers on the bench.
Even so the Toon boss insisted the injuries could never be used as an excuse. He never came close to having to.
Four times his patched-up prize-guys showed up Chelsea’s dud defence for what it was…an embarrassing, shambolic mess.
The marking for Alexander Isak’s opener, the same for Jamaal Lascelles’ second, the clanger to gift Joelinton a third, and the backed-off, lack of a challenge for Anthony Gordon’s fourth.
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Schoolboy errors all. Clinical, cut-throat finishes, yes, but this wasn’t Premier League defending. It wasn’t National League defending. It was Sunday pub team stuff.
Cucurella was first in the firing line, bizarrely and inexplicably going AWOL in the box for the Toon opener on 13 minutes.
An opener, incidentally, for which the architect was a youngster who would have been on the bench at best if the Toon had anything like a full quota.
Lewis Miley only turned 17 in May and started his first Premier League game in the loss at Bournemouth just before the international break.
But the cool-as-you-like incision through the heart of the Chelsea box to pick out Isak – helped by Cucurella’s wandering – was more wizened pro than early-days teen.
When Gordon’s ball from the left pinged off Joelinton and fell to Miley, it seemed the whole of St James’s Park was baying for him to shoot.
Instead the youngster took his time, slid the perfect ball to Isak – back after five games out with a damaged groin – and his team-mate was just as cool in picking his spot past Robert Sanchez.
Maybe it’s just as well Pochettino wasn’t in the dugout, given the way his side’s backline parted for that Newcastle opener.
He was watching from the stands, after a third booking of the season in the draw with City earned a one-game ban from the dugout.
Although when his side did show the balls to find a way back, it seemed as though it might not be a bad day after all for the visitors.
It came when Raheem Sterling crashed under Kieran Trippier’s challenge – somewhat theatrically it must be said, before picking himself up to make it a double whammy.
There was more than a hint of Cristiano Ronaldo in the way Sterling struck the free kick, a couple of yards outside the box.
And the result was worthy of a place of any others on the Portuguese maestro’s CV, as it dipped dramatically just under the bar, with Nick Pope rooted.
Some reckon the Toon keeper – playing his 50th Prem game for the club – could have at least made a better fist of it. In reality, Sterling’s effort was nigh on unsavable.
And not too many were having a pop at Pope when he showed great reflexes in throwing himself to his left to turn an Enzo Fernandez first timer behind.
Trippier then clipped the crossbar with a free kick – but the dam wasn’t long in bursting. Twice in 90 seconds, as it happens, as Chelsea simply imploded.
First there wasn’t a defender in sight when Gordon swung a cross into the box and Lascelles – one of THREE unmarked Magpies – rose highest to bury a header past Sanchez.
The Blues were still reeling when Cole Palmer rolled a bog standard pass to Thiago Silva, and ther Brazilian old timer suddenly looked every one of his 39 years.
He looked a damn sight more, in fact, as he was caught in two minds, stubbed his foot and rolled the ball for Joelinton to gallop away and blast a third.
Gordon himself bagged the fourth, making the most of Benoit Badiashile’s decision to back off, rather than challenge, and picking out the far corner.
And by then Chelsea – just to rub salt into the wounds – were down to ten after Reece James, booked for fouling Bruno Guimaraes, earned a justifiable second for a challenge on Gordon.
All of which made it a day to forget for Pochettino and Co…and one the boys in black and white never will.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
