Chelsea vs. Newcastle United: Winners and Losers from Premier League
Chelsea continued their recent recovery with a 5-1 victory at home to Newcastle United on Saturday in the Premier League.
Diego Costa broke the deadlock in just the fifth minute, and Chelsea led 3-0 within 17 minutes after Pedro and Willian found the back of the net. Pedro added a second strike in the second half, and Bertrand Traore notched his first Premier League goal in the 83rd minute.
Andros Townsend added a late consolation for Newcastle.
The win took Chelsea up to 12th place, while Newcastle fell into the relegation zone on goal difference.
Here, Bleacher Report selects winners and losers from the match.
Winner: Willian
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Willian needed less than five minutes to make a decisive impact on Saturday's game, and he continued to make valuable contributions as Chelsea dominated.
In just the fifth minute, Willian blew past Cheick Tiote, drove toward the edge of the box and laid off for Costa, who scored the opening goal. Twelve minutes later, Willian had his turn, running onto Costa's late pass and firing past Rob Elliot with Chelsea's third goal.
The goal and assist would have been enough to make him a winner here, but the midfielder also excelled throughout the game with his dribbling, passing and set-piece delivery.
It might have been "only" Newcastle, but Willian had a great game in his central attacking role on Saturday. As Chelsea keep trying to claw their way up the table, the Brazilian will need to replicate this performance.
Loser: Cheick Tiote
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On the flip side of Willian's early contribution was Tiote. The Newcastle man was beaten far too easily on the play, and his poor performance in midfield cost his side an early goal.
Instead of keeping Willian in front of him, Tiote attempted to nick the ball away and allowed the Chelsea man to run past him. The most important task for the Newcastle man was to keep Willian in front of him—and away from Newcastle's back line.
He failed, and Newcastle quickly found themselves a goal behind. They never recovered.
Winner: Diego Costa
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Like Willian, Costa finished with one goal and one assist. And like Willian, he was a menace throughout his time on the pitch.
In the fifth minute, he broke the deadlock with a deceptively difficult finish, nudging the ball past Elliot with the most exact of touches. Willian set up the strike with a through ball on the right, but Costa did his part with excellent movement and lethal finishing.
Costa then returned the favor in the 17th minute by assisting Willian's goal. After beating Fabricio Coloccini for pace, the Spain international held up play before teeing up Willian for an easy finish.
In 10 appearances under interim boss Guus Hiddink, Costa has now scored an impressive eight goals. Just imagine if he could put a whole season together.
Loser: Rolando Aarons
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Rolando Aarons was at fault for allowing Chelsea's second goal. His poor pass in midfield went straight to Pedro, who scored moments later. It was an awful error, and it was down to little more than a lapse in concentration.
Aarons, it should be noted, was playing out of position. Naturally a winger, manager Steve McClaren slotted him in at full-back to cover for injuries.
But you can't blame this on being played out of position. Aarons simply had to do better. Giving Chelsea that much help is a recipe for disaster.
Winner: Pedro
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Pedro scored twice on Saturday to bring his total for the season to four in the Premier League. That's a disappointing haul, no doubt about it, but both of these finishes were top-notch, and Pedro will be happy with his performance on the day.
In the ninth minute, Aarons gifted possession to Chelsea with an awful pass straight to Pedro. The Spaniard drove to the edge of the box and, seeing that Newcastle goalkeeper Elliot wasn't set, fired a low shot into the bottom corner from 20 yards.
His second—Chelsea's fourth—came in the 59th minute. Cesc Fabregas freed Pedro with a great ball over the top, and Pedro controlled with his chest before sending a precise shot past Elliot.
Pedro would probably be the first to admit that this season hasn't gone the way he'd hoped. But these two goals will give him much-needed confidence in front of goal.
Winner: Guus Hiddink
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After Saturday's result, Chelsea are now unbeaten in 10 league games, nine of which have come under Hiddink. Admittedly, this was only the Blues' third win under Hiddink, but the manner of victory must have been satisfying for the team in the context of this difficult season.
Yes, it was only Newcastle, and yes, the Magpies were awful. But Chelsea can only play the team in front of them, and on this day, the Blues made the most of the opportunities handed to them. That's really all you can ask in this situation.
Tougher tests await, starting with this week's trip to Paris Saint-Germain for the first leg of the two teams' UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie. But winning in such convincing fashion on Saturday gave Chelsea confidence ahead of that crunch clash.
