Chelsea stage a fantastic comeback and deny Woltemade's brace

Back in May 2025, Chelsea came to Newcastle in a fight for the Champions League and lost the game 2-0. In the end, both clubs finished in the first five places but it was a tight call until the last round. The Blues made their first trip to St. James Park for the first time since and were again on the losing side, this time after only 20 minutes. It looked like three of four nil was inevitable, but the Blues somehow prevailed before providing a stellar second half in which they managed to secure a draw: Newcastle – Chelsea 2-2.

It was a fantastic match with four goals and a few excellent opportunities for both sides, but it was a game in which the Magpies will be very bitter not to win it. Newcastle was the better team, scored early and had numerous chances to win the game, even when the score was 2-2 but Woltemade missed the opportunity to secure a het-trick in the first half, and subs Barnes and Elanga will be angry with themselves for not scoring the winning goal in the last five minutes. The home team keeps losing opportunities to move closer to the Champions League place, while the Blues are into the fourth place with today’s earned point.

When Cole Palmer put a fierce shot which went over the bar in the third minute, nobody could suggest that it would be the only meaningful effort from the visitors unit the end of the half. But just a minute later, Newcastle was leading 1-0. Gordon failed to score on a simple tap-in after Murphy’s cross, but Woltemade was there to pick up the rebound for an easy score. The next big chance was again a goal for the Magpies. Gordon made a great cross and the German put the ball into the bottom left corner. VAR took a long look due to Woltemade’s possible offside but allowed the goal in the end. Schar picked up a volley in the 30th minute but the ball went straight into Sanchez. And then the best opportunity for 3-0 happened in the 45th minute, when Gordon and Woltemade made a same opportunity as for the second goal, but this time the German missed the goal by inches.

Any coach in the world whose team would be losing 2-0 at halftime would surely say to his players that they need to score fast at the beginning of the second half. And that’s exactly what happened. After just four minutes, Reece James scored a beautiful goal from a free kick from over 25 meters. A bit embarrassing for United’s defense. But that was not all. Chelsea completely took over the game and played just like Newcastle in the first half. The hosts showed nothing and when Thiaw slipped on a long ball to Joao Pedro, the Brazilian used it to equalize the game in the 66th minute. Coach Eddie Howe tried to keep the intensity and introduced three forwards: Wissa, Elanga and Barnes, but they failed to give them the win. The best opportunity happened when Wissa found Barnes perfectly in the penalty area but out of nowhere Reece James appeared to tackle Barnes and prevent a goal. The former Leicester winger had another excellent opportunity but the ball whistled through the bar. Elanga had a counter in the 89th minute but instead of scoring a winner, his shot went wide right.

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE - MATCHDAY 17

Saturday

Newcastle - Chelsea 2-2 (2-0)

/Woltemade 4, 20 - James 49, Pedro 66/

18.00: (1.50) Bournemouth (4.20) Burnley (6.75)

18.00: (1.70) Brighton (4.00) Sunderland (5.20)

18.00: (1.22) Man.City (7.75) West Ham (13.0)

18.00: (3.60) Wolverhampton (3.40) Brentford (2.10)

20.30: (3.55) Tottenham (3.70) Liverpool (2.10)

23.00: (6.75) Everton (3.80) Arsenal (1.63)

23.00: (2.60) Leeds (3.25) Crystal Palace (2.75)

Sunday

19.30: (2.20) Aston Villa (3.75) Man.Utd. (3.25)

Monday

23.00: (2.50) Fulham (3.30) Nott.Forest (2.85)

***odds are subject to change***