The two Three Lions prospects endured contrasting fortunes at Stamford Bridge on Monday night
Where on earth would Chelsea be without Cole Palmer? Once again on Monday night, their £42.5 million ($52m) summer signing from Manchester City proved to be the difference against Newcastle, helping himself to his 18th and 19th Premier League goal contributions of the season in a much-needed 3-2 victory.
The Blues got off to a dream start when Jackson's clever flick sent Palmer's low shot past the scrambling Martin Dubravka inside six minutes. But after squandering a few chances to cushion their advantage, they were made to pay. A comedy of errors eventually resulted in Alexander Isak having enough space on the edge of the box to curl home an exquisite equaliser.
Fortunately for Chelsea, though, Palmer had a bit of magic up his sleeve in what was shaping up to be a fairly even second half. Just before the hour mark, he picked up Enzo Fernandez's pass on the edge of the box, with his perfect first touch affording him enough room to smash the ball through Sven Botman's legs and into the back of the net.
With Newcastle knocking on the door, substitute Mykhailo Mudryk then made sure of the victory, dancing through the Magpies backline and past Dubravka before rolling it home. With the result assured, the Blues' faithful burst into a spontaneous rendition of Bob Marley's classic Three Little Birds, only for Jacob Murphy's late screamer to add a little more tension to proceedings.
There's still plenty of questions for Mauricio Pochettino to answer of course, but after over a year of slim pickings, this performance will go some way to relieving the negativity that has infested Stamford Bridge this season.
GOAL rates Chelsea's players…
Getty ImagesGoalkeeper & Defence
Djordje Petrovic (5/10):
Started off a little shaky with his distribution before growing in confidence. Little he could do for either goal.
Malo Gusto (6/10):
Punished for overplaying when Isak curled home that first-half equaliser. A shame, as going forward he was scintillating at times.
Axel Disasi (6/10):
Allowed Isak too much time to shape up for his leveller. Was assertive in his defending otherwise.
Trevoh Chalobah (5/10):
Went charging out just before Isak's equaliser and did not win the ball. Distribution wasn't particularly good.
Marc Cucurella (6/10):
Fared well against the dual threats of Livramento and Almiron on his first Premier League start since October 2023, but he did overcommit in the lead up to Murphy's equaliser.
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Enzo Fernandez (7/10):
Broke up play fairly effectively and set up Palmer's goal by fizzing the ball through the lines. Did endure a couple of sloppy moments, though.
Moises Caicedo (7/10):
Made a couple of impressive tackles and was generally a solid performer.
Conor Gallagher (6/10):
Full of energy and crafted a couple of bright openings for his side. Credited with an assist for Mudryk's goal, though he knew little about it.
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Cole Palmer (9/10):
Just sensational. Chelsea would be lost without him.
Nicolas Jackson (7/10):
Showed inventiveness to give his side an early lead. Link-up play was solid.
Raheem Sterling (4/10):
Booked for a petulant foul. Generally pretty wasteful in the final third. Needs to start stepping up more regularly as a senior member of this young team.
Getty ImagesSubs & Manager
Mykhailo Mudryk (8/10):
Came out with a point to prove and scored a fantastic goal.
Cesare Casadei (N/A):
Only on for a few moments, but did make one rash foul.
Carney Chukwuemeka (N/A):
An even shorter cameo than Casadei.
Mauricio Pochettino (7/10):
Looked especially delighted at full time and understandably so. He received a warm reception from the fans near the dugout at full time, which suggests there's life in his managerial career yet.