Newcastle United host Chelsea in a crucial Premier League clash as the race for Champions League qualification hots up.
With Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa breathing down their necks, both teams go into the game level on points and goal difference, meaning a win for either side at St James’ Park could be huge in securing a top-five spot. An unexpected slip-up for Manchester City, dropping points in a draw against relegated Southampton, leaves them still within reach for a victor with just two rounds of fixtures to come after this weekend.
Chelsea are in the slightly better form of the two sides, having defeated champions Liverpool last weekend for their third win in a row as Cole Palmer ended his goal drought in a 3-1 victory. Newcastle were held by Brighton last time out and go to Arsenal next weekend, so are perhaps more in need of three points than Chelsea as each club looks to return to the top tier of European competition.
Follow all of the latest from the Premier League fixture in our live blog below:
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Newcastle vs Chelsea LIVE
- Newcastle play host to Chelsea in a crucial clash in the top-five race | Live on TNT Sports
- Both sides are level on points as the chase for Champions League places hots up
- Newcastle XI: Pope; Botman, Schar, Burn; Murphy, Tonali, Guimaraes, Livramento; Barnes, Gordon; Isak.
- Chelsea XI: Sanchez; Caicedo; Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Lavia, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Madueke; Jackson.
- GOAL! NEWCASTLE 1-0 Chelsea (Sandro Tonali, 3 minutes)
Newcastle United FC 1 - 0 Chelsea FC
RED CARD! Nicolas Jackson is sent off! Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 34 minutes
12:35
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Upgraded to a red card
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 34 minutes
12:35
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Now then! That looks naughty from Nicolas Jackson, glancing at Sven Botman as the pair prepare to contest a launch forward before thrusting a forearm into the Dutchman’s face. There was a bit of controversy over Tyrone Mings’s challenge on Alex Scott yesterday - it’s a yellow for now but the VAR is taking a look at Jackson’s challenge...
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 32 minutes
12:33
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Howls of disappointment as Harvey Barnes plays a strange pass in the final third, the forward not spotting a gut-busting charge from Tino Livramento on the overlap and instead trying, and failing, to find Alexander Isak.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 29 minutes
12:30
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Moises Caicedo is perhaps fortunate not to have gone into the book yet. A foul on Anthony Gordon is his third or fourth, though referee John Brooks waves away the Newcastle players inquiring about a card.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 25 minutes
12:27
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Harry Latham-Coyle
The Killer Bs of Botman and Burn certainly give an imposing edge to Newcastle’s backline. At a burly six-foot-four, there aren’t many players in the Premier League that outsize Botman but the Dutchman has to look up to his teammate, who really has enjoyed an outstanding season.
You wouldn’t want to encounter them on the door at the nightclub - and Chelsea aren’t getting much joy at trying to force their way through them so far.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 24 minutes
12:25
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Wasteful from Pedro Neto, failing to beat the first man with the set piece, as Enzo Fernandez did earlier.
He gets another go. A better outswinger on the second occasion, though comfortably headed clear by Sven Botman.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 23 minutes
12:24
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Harry Latham-Coyle
A bit of fortune for Chelsea, a sketchy pass into midfield from Robert Sanchez unpunished with Bruno Guimaraes putting a little too much contact through the back of Romeo Lavia before dispossessing him.
That’s better, though, from the visitors - Nicolas Jackson, seldom sighted so far, earns a corner.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 21 minutes
12:22
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Chelsea haven’t really got going yet. They are trying their best to hassle and harry Newcastle in forward areas, though haven’t managed to consistently do so without conceding free kicks.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 19 minutes
12:20
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Poor from Alexander Isak! It’s a far from straightforward chance for the striker as he picks up the pieces after a free kick, but you’d expect a forward of his quality to do rather better than that. Chopped into the ground and simple for Robert Sanchez.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 18 minutes
12:19
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Another Newcastle player hits the deck, Sven Botman caught uncomfortably by Moises Caicedo. After such a long lay-off with a protracted return from an ACL injury, let us hope the Dutchman can put a run of games together to the end of the season - this is not a serious ailment.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 16 minutes
12:17
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Excellent defending from Trevoh Chalobah, seemingly burned by Alexander Isak initially yet bursting back to win a battle for a bouncing ball. The centre-half has been a real find in the last few weeks for Enzo Maresca.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 15 minutes
12:16
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Newcastle’s system is allowing them to spring forward in great numbers each time they win a turnover of the ball. Jacob Murphy and Tino Livramento are both getting forward with regularity, while Sandro Tonali looks a threat breaking from midfield.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 13 minutes
12:14
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Harry Latham-Coyle
There is serious energy about Newcastle today, getting the home crowd going. Moises Caicedo gets a good header in after the hosts work to the byline, Anthony Gordon disappointed as Harvey Barnes’s cross seems destined to meet him.
Bruno Guimaraes chests down cutely on the follow-up but can’t hit the target with a right-footed volley.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 11 minutes
12:12
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Chelsea are clinging on a bit here. Tino Livramento is just squeezed out after a shooting chance briefly appears.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 10 minutes
12:11
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Newcastle break the shackles and get back into the Chelsea box, but Harvey Barnes - thankfully now moving much more freely - can’t burst his shot between blocking limbs.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 9 minutes
12:10
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Enzo Maresca has a rather fetching salmon jumper on, undeterred by a warm day at St James’ Park. He urges his team into their pressing shape as they look to disrupt Newcastle’s early rhythm.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 6 minutes
12:07
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Ooh, that looks unpleasant for Harvey Barnes. It was a knock of knees with Trevoh Chalobah, though Barnes will try to run it off.
Newcastle 1-0 Chelsea, 5 minutes
12:06
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Harry Latham-Coyle
This is a bit of a concern for Newcastle - Harvey Barnes goes down having been limping around for a minute or so.
Jacob Murphy is at right-wing-back with Tino Livramento over on the left, and Sven Botman, Fabian Schar and Dan Burn making up the back three for the hosts.
GOAL! NEWCASTLE 1-0 Chelsea (Sandro Tonali, 3 minutes)
12:04
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Harry Latham-Coyle
What a noise! Newcastle strike first - and fast!
Sandro Tonali taps it home! Newcastle’s new system causes Chelsea all sorts of problems, Anthony Gordon first stressing the left edge before Romeo Lavia gives the ball away to allow Jacob Murphy to explore the right. His ball across evades Harvey Barnes but not the Italian midfielder, who knocks it past Robert Sanchez to give Newcastle a perfect start.
Newcastle 0-0 Chelsea, 2 minutes
12:02
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Enzo Fernandez swings it in...straight to Jacob Murphy at the front post. Not the Chelsea captain’s best.
It looks like a back three from Eddie Howe.
Newcastle 0-0 Chelsea, 1 minute
12:02
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Neat feet from Pedro Neto, a deft Cruyff turn taking him past a couple of would-be tacklers to create space for a crossing opportunity. It’s deflected behind for a corner. Bright start from Chelsea into the shadows that cloak the Newcastle box.
Up lumber the big men.
KICK OFF!
12:00
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Harry Latham-Coyle
A peep of the referee’s whistle and we are underway at St James’ Park.
Newcastle vs Chelsea
11:57
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Harry Latham-Coyle
It’s a glorious day on Tyneside, the sun beating down and the fans in full voice. It’s high noon and a possible top-five shootout - what more could you want?
Counting down to kick-off... ⏳
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) May 11, 2025
Let's do this pic.twitter.com/ikURfadzUc
Newcastle vs Chelsea
11:47
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Eddie Howe has been back in front of a TNT Sports microphone ahead of kick off: “I think we know the importance of the game and what’s around it, especially after yesterday’s result.
“Hopefully we’ll see Kieran Trippier and Joe Willock before the end of the season, but there’s no guarantee of that. It obviouslty changes the balance of the team, but Sven Botman and Anthony Gordon have their own qualities. Anthony made a difference last week.
“Learning from our two games against them this season at Stamford Bridge, they showed their qualities. We anticipate a really good game today. We are at home and that’s got to be used to our advantage.”
And Newcastle's remaining fixtures are...
11:40
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Arsenal and Everton follow this fixture for Newcastle - three home points would be handy, you’d suggest.
Remaining fixtures
11 May: Chelsea (H)
18 May: Arsenal (A)
25 May: Everton (H)
Chelsea's fixtures to come...
11:35
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Victory today would be hugely significant for Chelsea, with a meeting with fellow top-five hopefuls Nottingham Forest still to come before the season is out. A penultimate game against Manchester United might be neatly timed given Ruben Amorim’s focus on Europa League success:
11 May: Newcastle (A)
16 May: Manchester United (H)
25 May: Nottingham Forest (A)
Eddie Howe ready to splurge on new signing and surpass record fee
11:25
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Eddie Howe would be prepared to top the £63m Newcastle paid for record signing Alexander Isak this summer if the right player was available.
The Magpies have been astute in their transfer dealings under their new owners, but have invested heavily in the likes of Isak, Sandro Tonali and Anthony Gordon, whose transfer fees all eclipsed the then high of £40m predecessor Mike Ashley forked out for Joelinton in July 2019.
Head coach Howe has not been able to buy a single senior player in the last three transfer windows - and was forced to sell Elliot Anderson and Yankuba Minteh last summer - because of profitability and sustainability restrictions, but is likely to be in a much better position this time around.
Asked if he would be able to spend as much as £65m on a single signing, he said: "We've not been afraid historically, if the money is there, to sign a big player, i.e. Alex.
"For me, that was big money at the time - still is big money in anyone's world - but we felt he was the right player to spend that money on, so I'm more than happy to do that if that's the right thing and it has the biggest effect for the team and for the squad.
"But I don't think I can give you a clear answer now on what direction we will go because we don't know everything that we need to know."
Eddie Howe reveals double injury blow for Newcastle
11:24
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Eddie Howe has revealed that Joe Willock and Kieran Trippier miss out through injury today for Newcastle, hence the changes defensively and the reshuffle in midfield.
"It is so tight,” the Newcastle boss told TNT Sports. “You detach yourself from elsewhere and just focus on what you can do.
"Chelsea are on form but so are we. We need the crowd today. We know it is a massive game.
"We have lost Kieran Trippier and Joe Willock to injury, which is a tough one."
Enzo Maresca hopeful Chelsea aren't left to rue missed chances in top-five race
11:15
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca expressed frustration that his team's wastefulness in front of goal has left Champions League qualification in the balance.
The Blues have struggled at times to convert chances and though they go into today’s crunch meeting with Newcastle with their fate in their own hands, a top-five finish is far from assured.
Maresca has seen his side suffer a number of potentially costly slips this season, including dropping five points to relegated Ipswich and being the only team so far to lose at Portman Road, as well as a run of two wins from 10 between December and February during which they scored just 11 times.
Chelsea are locked together on 63 points with fourth-placed Newcastle and the pair are favourites to wrap up two of the remaining Champions League places.
However, both know a stumble could allow in Nottingham Forest or Aston Villa who are a point and three points behind respectively.
"The frustration is that we've had many games where we've created enough chances to win the game and we didn't win," said Maresca reflecting on his team's position.
"But now is not the moment to think about that. Now is the moment to win as much as we can in these last three games."
They've re-badged it, you fool
11:05
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Some intriguing news from Newcastle on Friday, with the club exploring a change of crest to modernise the Magpies’ iconography.
Chelsea team news
10:49
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Chelsea, perhaps unsurprisingly, are unchanged form their last league outing, with Moises Caicedo again at right-back with Romeo Lavia partnering Enzo Fernandez in midfield.
Chelsea XI: Sanchez; Caicedo; Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Lavia, Fernandez; Neto, Palmer, Madueke; Jackson.
Team news is in! #CFC | #NEWCHE pic.twitter.com/FuZfYzqeC3
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 11, 2025
Team news - Newcastle
10:47
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Harry Latham-Coyle
A slight shuffle from Eddie Howe, who looks to have changed his system with all of Harvey Barnes, Jacob Murphy and a recalled Anthony Gordon starting. Sven Botman completes his return from a long lay-off alongside Fabian Schar at the back after featuring off the bench against Brighton.
Newcastle XI: Pope; Livramento, Botman, Schar, Burn; Tonali, Guimaraes; Barnes, Gordon, Murphy; Isak.
HOWAY NEWCASTLE! ✊ pic.twitter.com/upmuUzyd0O
— Newcastle United (@NUFC) May 11, 2025
Team news on the way...
10:45
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Team news should be dropping imminently from St James’ Park. What do Eddie Howe and Enzo Maresca have up their sleeves?
Enzo Maresca claims Conference League win would show ‘Chelsea are back’
10:30
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Harry Latham-Coyle
A minor trophy the Conference League may be given it is not long at all since Chelsea claimed European glory proper, but Enzo Maresca still feels that success would be hugely positive for the club after some tough years.
Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall on target as Chelsea coast into Conference League final
10:20
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Also into a European final are Chelsea, who had a comfortable enough time in their second leg against Djurgarden on Thursday.
Six English teams to play in Champions League thanks to Man United-Tottenham final
10:10
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Of course, there will be bumper English representation in Europe’s top tier competition next year after Manchester United and Tottenham progressed to the Europa League final.
Champions League qualification ‘an expectation’ for Newcastle, says Eddie Howe
09:55
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Eddie Howe certainly feels like Newcastle should be one of the five Champions League representatives next season.
Man City, Newcastle, Chelsea, Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa: Who has the best run-in?
09:45
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Harry Latham-Coyle
Best of luck predicting the top-five race - it looks like it could be a doozy of an end to the season, which is a good job with little drama elsewhere.
Newcastle vs Chelsea LIVE
09:09
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Harry Latham-Coyle
The race for a top-five finish in the Premier League is hotting up, with Newcastle and Chelsea firmly in the mix. The pair begin today’s clash level on points, knowing that a win will be huge as they look to secure a Champions League spot next season.
Kick off is at 12pm BST.
