1. This was all about survival first for Newcastle
In the opening half-hour, Chelsea were brilliant in possession. John Obi Mikel may not be as good a defensive shield as Nemanja Matic but the Nigerian midfielder added more threat to Chelsea’s offensive play as he helped Cesc Fabregas and Oscar probe Newcastle’s defensive unit.
But Alan Pardew’s men withstood that pressure. They survived a torrid opening 30 minutes, when Chelsea looked to be at their formidable best; they survived losing their goalkeeper at half-time and bringing on a 21-year-old debutant; and they survived playing out the closing exchanges with 10 men.
2. Arsenal’s Invincibles were a one-off
Chelsea can go on to win all the domestic trophies and possibly the Champions League this season if they do not lose key players to suspensions and injuries. They are that good, but repeating what Wenger’s men did is almost impossible.
There will always be games where even a perfectly built team loses because of factors beyond the control of players or the manager. Newcastle produced one of their best performances of the season and there were times when luck was clearly not on Chelsea’s side.
Jose Mourinho is always a pragmatist first and, even at the start of this game when his players swaggered into St James Park after convincingly thumping Tottenham in midweek, the Special One still refrained from aiming to replicate Arsenal’s Invincibles.
3. This was the authentic champagne moment for Newcastle’s central midfielders
Cheick Tiote made the headlines for the wrong reasons in the build-up to this game and Moussa Sissoko was just returning from suspension after the he was needlessly sent-off in the defeat at West Ham.
While Pardew revealed that Sissoko owed the team for his costly actions at Upton Park, both players actually owed the team and they repaid their debt with their performance in this game. They worked incredibly hard to contain one of the best teams in the world.
4. Mourinho will have to wait a little longer for his victory at St James’ Park
Last season, Mourinho famously accused his players of lacking drive when they lost at Newcastle but this time the Special One had no problems with his players’ performance. He also lauded the referee and just chalked this defeat up to bad luck (and Newcastle’s ball boys).
This was his fifth league visit to the St James Park during his entire time as Chelsea manager, but he is yet to record a win. Mourinho may have some League Cup victories at St James’ Park to console himself with but Newcastle always find a way to match or better his side in the league.
5. Steven Taylor dodged a bullet
Taylor had a good 80 minutes as he and Fabricio Coloccini managed to contain Diego Costa but he ruined that by needlessly scything down Andre Schurrle to pick up a second yellow card. His teammates did not even make a strong argument against referee Martin Atkinson’s decision to send the centre-back off as the foul was so bad.
That left the Magpies under a lot of pressure and it lifted Chelsea’s confidence levels. He must have been relieved after the final whistle that his teammates held on because his rush of blood was unacceptable for an experienced centre-back.
