Newcastle United delivered a blow to Chelsea as Anthony Gordon’s first-half goal clinched a rare away win at Stamford Bridge.
In front of England manager Thomas Tuchel, Gordon scored the game-winning goal in the 18th minute as the Blues were jeered off at Stamford Bridge and lost to the Magpies at home for the first time since 2012.
Chelsea had taken the lead at the beginning, missing a free header through Wesley Fofana before creating more opportunities for Alejandro Garnacho, Cole Palmer, and Enzo Fernández.
However, Gordon opened the score from close range after Joe Willock broke Chelsea’s offside trap by running on to Tino Livramento’s pass.
Following the goal, Chelsea posed another threat through Palmer, whose shot was saved, but the visual assistant referee (VAR) dismissed a penalty appeal after determining whether Reece James had dragged down Malick Thiaw.
Just before halftime, Rob Sanchez, who had been called up for the fourth time in five games, made a superb stop to deny Jacob Ramsey.
Blues manager Liam Rosenior took initiative and substituted forward Liam Delap for defender Malo Gusto despite the team’s halftime deficit.
The substitute put Aaron Ramsdale to the test right away with a shot from the edge of the box, and Newcastle defender Sven Botman subsequently stopped Garnacho’s attempt.
Nick Woltemade made contact with Palmer’s foot inside the box, but referee Paul Tierney, who had been involved in Chelsea’s pre-match center-circle chat, waved away a penalty shout.
In the 69th minute, Gordon had another curling attempt stopped. Later, Trevoh Chalobah headed wide from a corner, and Delap shot over on his weaker left foot, sending a header wide.
Joao Pedro hooked a header onto the roof of the net with nearly the last kick of the game, and captain Reece James, who signed a new six-year contract on Friday, sent a free kick against the post in stoppage time.
After losing consecutive games both at home and in Europe, the Blues were jeered off.
Chelsea is still in fifth place in the Premier League after playing one more game than Liverpool, who will host Tottenham on Sunday, while Newcastle rises to ninth place.
After losing the first leg 5-2, Chelsea will host Paris Saint-Germain at Stamford Bridge on Tuesday (20:00 GMT) in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 match.
They will then travel to Everton in the Premier League on Saturday (17:30).
Newcastle will visit Barcelona on Wednesday for the second leg of their Champions League match following a 1-1 draw at St. James’ Park, and they will host local rivals Sunderland in the Premier League on Sunday (12:00).
