Mudryk wonder strike seals Chelsea win over Magpies

Premier League: Chelsea 3 Newcastle 2

The smile and relief on Mauricio Pochettino’s face when celebrating his Chelsea side’s 3-2 win over Newcastle United last night told the story of just how crucial a victory this was for the under pressure Blues boss.

A crushing 1-0 extra-time defeat to Liverpool in the Carabao Cup final two weeks ago and their subsequent 2-2 Premier League draw with struggling west London rivals Brentford had heaped further pressure on the Chelsea boss after what has been another underwhelming campaign for the club despite another summer or significant investment.

Nothing other than a victory against the side who sit directly above them in the Premier League table would do for Pochettino, and the man he has so often turned to to provide the answers for his side this season once again came up trumps.

Of all Chelsea’s 30 odd new signings since Todd Boehly and co took over the club, Cole Palmer again proved why he is the best of the bunch with a fine solo display to help his side to victory.

He assisted the Blues’ opener for Nicolas Jackson and found the net with a beautiful strike in the second half to close the gap on 10th placed Newcastle to just a point and with a game in hand on their latest opponents.

Chelsea have invested heavily in young talent under their current ownership and with little reward to show it for almost two seasons into their new project and following that Carabao Cup final defeat to Liverpool. But the club certainly have at least one star on their hands in Palmer.

His low strike at goal on six minutes may have been heading just wide but Jackson got the slightest of touches on his effort to flick the ball into the bottom corner and beyond a diving Martin Dubravka in the