"He just loses his bearings" - Pundit brands 'sloppy' Chelsea star as the 'culprit' after 4-1 loss to Newcastle United
Pundit Chris Waddle branded Thiago Silva as the 'culprit' in Newcastle United's third goal against Chelsea.
The Magpies beat the Blues 4-1 in their Premier League encounter at St. James' Park on Saturday (25 November). A sensational free-kick from Raheem Sterling in the 23rd minute canceled out Alexander Isak's early opener.
Jamaal Lascelles then headed his team in front with a goal at the hour mark. With the Blues still recovering from conceding, Silva made a catastrophic blunder at the back just seconds later to concede the third.
With Joelinton trying to press him, the Brazilian center-back attempted to play a backpass to Robert Sanchez. He completely mishit the pass, and the Newcastle midfielder was happy to latch onto the ball and smash it into the net from an unmissable range.
The Magpies, having scored two goals within as many minutes, never looked like giving up their lead from thereon. While the final scoreline reflected a comprehensive win for the Toons, things could have been different had Silva not made the error, especially just seconds after Lascelles' goal.
Trailing by a two-goal margin away from home with 30 minutes left on the clock isn't an ideal situation for any team in the sport. After the former AC Milan superstar's error, Waddle commented on BBC Radio 5 Live (h/t the Chelsea Chronicle):
"Thiago Silva is the one who is the culprit [for Joelinton's goal. I don’t know what’s going through his head. He just loses his bearings. He plays a really sloppy ball and it is an easy, easy goal for Joelinton."
Reece James was sent off for a second yellow-card offence in the 73rd minute, making Chelsea's task all the more tougher. Anthony Gordon sealed the 4-1 scoreline 10 minutes later to hand Newcastle a huge win at home.
Mauricio Pochettino on Chelsea's loss to Newcastle
Mauricio Pochettino has termed Chelsea's 4-1 loss to Newcastle United as the west London giants' 'worst game of the season' so far.
The Blues were down to 10 men after Reece James was sent off in the 73rd minute. But the England international had no one to blame but himself for the two bookings, and Newcastle were 3-1 up by then.
After the game, a frustrated Pochettino told Premier League Productions (h/t BBC):
"It was our worst game of the season. It was tough to be in the stands. We cannot complain about the result, we did not read the game from the beginning. We did not play how we should play, we showed a lack of intensity and energy."
The Blues kept 46% of the ball away from home, recording an 84% pass accuracy which was just two percent below Newcastle's mark. The Magpies, however, managed 14 shots — twice more than Chelsea's tally.