"They might have turned the corner" - Mark Lawrenson makes bold claims while predicting Newcastle United vs Chelsea result
Pundit Mark Lawrenson has backed Chelsea to beat Newcastle United in their Premier League clash at St. James' Park on Saturday, November 25.
The Blues come into the game on the back of two positive results against Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City. They beat Spurs 4-1 away before playing out a thrilling 4-4 draw against City at Stamford Bridge.
They are still 10th in the standings, though after a poor start to the season. They are four points behind seventh-placed Newcastle. The Magpies lost both of their previous two games across competitions. They lost 2-0 at Borussia Dortmund in the UEFA Champions League before losing 2-0 at Bournemouth in the Premier League.
Despite their next game being at home, Lawrenson has predicted Newcastle to falter again on Saturday, writing for Paddy Power:
"Newcastle have got all sorts of injury problems and they looked knackered when they lost at Bournemouth. Chelsea are on the up and that was a fab game, that 4-4 draw against Manchester City. I’m going to go for Chelsea. Whisper it, but it looks like they might have turned the corner."
Prediction: 1-2
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino on trying to build momentum
The Blues had a poor start to the season and looked destined to replicate their results from last season where they finished 12th in the Premier League. Chelsea have, however, arguably put in better performances under Mauricio Pochettino, which was evidenced in their last two games.
They got two big results to start off a tough run of fixtures but were halted by the international break. Ahead of the Newcastle clash, Pochettino acknowledged that the timing of the break wasn't ideal but backed his side to maintain their momentum. He said (via Chelseafc.com):
"The break was in a bad time but we are going to try to keep the momentum. We have another amazing game against Newcastle, a very good team. It’s going to be tough because the atmosphere of St James’ Park is always amazing.
"We are going to try to keep the momentum. We were already in a moment where we were really building our way to play and the results were on our side. But I believe that we can keep the momentum, even with two weeks with no competition."
The Blues are currently in the middle of a tough period on paper for them. After Newcastle, they will host Brighton & Hove Albion before facing Manchester United at Old Trafford.