Michael Owen gives his prediction for Chelsea vs. Newcastle United
Liverpool legend and BT Sport pundit Michael Owen has revealed his prediction for Monday’s Premier League clash between Chelsea and Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge.
The 41-year-old predicts that Chelsea will come out of the fixture unscathed and grab a comfortable 3-0 victory over Steve Bruce’s men.
In his weekly column on BetVictor, the former Liverpool forward stated that Chelsea have been on an impressive run since the appointment of head coach Thomas Tuchel. Owen believes that the German manager has helped improve Chelsea's backline.
"Chelsea have hit a nice run of form under new manager Thomas Tuchel. The German certainly seems to have had the desired effect with the players, who are now noticeably more organised, especially at the back," wrote Owen.
Owen also praised Newcastle’s recent form after making a shaky start to the season. However, he believes the battle at Stamford Bridge will be a tough one as Chelsea have their sights on a top-four finish.
"Newcastle have had a few good results of late. This will have come as such a welcome sight to the Geordie faithful after such a worrying run of form at the start of the year," wrote Owen.
"I think this one will be tough for the visitors. Chelsea have their tails up and seem to be extremely focused on securing Champions League football next season. I think they’ll have too much and can see them running out comfortable winners," predicted Owen.
Chelsea looking to move into the top four of the Premier League
Chelsea are on a six-game unbeaten run since Thomas Tuchel took over at the helm and they have won four games on the trot across all competitions. The Blues are currently in fifth place in the Premier League table - one point behind defending champions Liverpool.
The Blues can move into the much sought after top-four spot with a win, after an incredible surge up the table in recent weeks. In their last outing, a rotated Chelsea side battled for a 1-0 victory over Championship side Barnsley to progress to the semi-finals of the FA Cup.
On Monday, the Blues will welcome a Newcastle side who are just finding their rhythm after a torrid start to the season. After a run of 11 winless matches, the visitors have picked up two wins from their last three games and are 16th in the league table with 25 points from 23 games.