Chelsea are looking to rebound from a hammering in Europe in midweek as they face Newcastle United in the Premier League on Saturday.
The Blues come into this game off the back of a heavy 5-2 defeat in Paris at the hands of PSG in the Champions League. A solid performance was undone by a shambolic last 15 minutes, where schoolboy defending and questionable goalkeeping allowed the Parisians to bag three times in the final quarter and put one foot in the last eight.
Manager Liam Rosenior has copped plenty of criticism for his questionable game management, waiting far too long to make substitutions and finally doing so when his team looked out on their feet.
The loss means Chelsea now have three wins, one draw and two defeats from their last six games. Their form, then, is still decent, but the team have shown both strengths and weaknesses in that period.
Over 2.5 goals have been scored in all of their last four games, while BTTS has occurred in all of their last five, so this should be an entertaining game for the neutral viewer.
Chelsea will also be hoping that striker Joao Pedro, who has six goals in his last six games, can once again be a difference maker in attack.
The Magpies enter this one following their own Champions League exploits, drawing 1-1 at home to Barcelona. In what was a fairly dominant performance, Newcastle will have been kicking themselves for their wastefulness in a game they should've won by two or three.
Their recent form is mixed, with two wins, one draw and three defeats from their last six. Five of their last six games have seen over 2.5 goals scored, while all of their last five have seen both sides find the back of the net.
The recent head-to-head record between these two sides has been very even, with the last six clashes producing two wins for each team and two draws. The games tend to be high-event encounters, with four of the last six seeing over 2.5 goals and BTTS occur.
We do, then, fancy this one to end honours even, with both sides currently operating at a similar level.
Chelsea 2-2 Newcastle United
