Werner ends goal drought as Chelsea climb into top four

A place in the top four. A Timo Werner Premier League goal. And a Kepa Arrizabalaga clean sheet. To borrow a phrase from a leading brewer, if Thomas Tuchel did good starts…

Chelsea stretched their unbeaten start to life under head coach Tuchel to six games, the last five of which they have won, to move into the Champions League qualification places above West Ham United and Liverpool.

Werner broke his 14-game Premier League goal drought in this comfortable victory over Newcastle United, who could yet get sucked into a relegation fight and proved to be the perfect opposition for Kepa to make his league comeback against.

Kepa made an excellent secondhalf save on what was otherwise one of the easiest nights of his troubled Chelsea career, although Tuchel confirmed afterwards that Edouard Mendy remained his No1 and would now step back in.

The hard part, of course, will be staying in the top four and there will certainly be tougher challenges ahead. But nobody at Chelsea could have envisaged they would already have qualification for next season’s Champions League in their own hands.

“Top four is the target and stays the target, there are many teams behind us chasing,” Tuchel said. “We had many points to recover and it remains a big challenge because many games are coming.

“Maybe this [being in the top four] is a reward for us now, but it cannot distract us and from Thursday, after two days off, we will only concentrate on Southampton and nothing else will be allowed. The bad news is the hard work will not stop.”

Kepa’s shock start was his first in the Premier League since Chelsea’s 3-3 draw with Southampton at Stamford Bridge in October. The Spaniard had kept a clean sheet in his first appearance under Tuchel against Barnsley in the FA Cup and produced another shut-out thanks to a fine late save from Joe Willock’s header.

But asked if Kepa would keep his place, Tuchel said: “No, Edouard is the No1 and that is clear, it stays like this. I am very happy Kepa continued with a second clean sheet and it was the right moment to let him feel the rhythm and build his confidence. We hoped for the very best performance and Edu will be in from now on because he is the No1.”

The only negative of the night for Tuchel was the injury to Tammy Abraham, who hurt his right ankle

after being challenged by Jamaal Lascelles inside the penalty area.

Lascelles took the ball and the man, but no penalty was given and there was no Var view. Following treatment and after trying to hobble back on to the pitch, Abraham limped off and was replaced by Olivier Giroud in the 20th minute.

“It was a reckless tackle,” Tuchel said.

With Abraham off the pitch, there was even more pressure on Werner to end his Premier League goal drought that had stretched over three months before this match.

The former RB Leipzig man almost got on the scoresheet, when he got a toe on to a headed cross from Marcos Alonso, who had been brilliantly found by Giroud, but the ball bounced just wide.

Werner, though, quickly turned provider in the 31st minute to create the chance from which Giroud opened the scoring.

The German did well to create a yard of space for himself on the left and his cross was pushed straight into the path of Giroud by Karl Darlow, and the Frenchman found the net.

The goal was no more than Chelsea deserved and the home side’s lead should have quickly been doubled by Werner, who shot over with just Darlow to beat.

Werner’s goal did finally come with six minutes of the first half remaining and he will not care that it was gifted to him by some comical Newcastle defending.

Mason Mount’s corner was headed backwards into the danger area by Ciaran Clark and the ball bounced off Lascelles before falling perfectly at the back post to Werner, who could not miss. “As a striker you always want to score, the last month was hard,” Werner said.

Mount could have killed the game completely in first-half stoppage time, but the midfielder pulled his shot wide. Mateo Kovacic’s performance deserved a goal and he almost hit the back of the net with a rising shot that whistled just over after receiving the ball from Callum Hudson-odoi, who had earlier gone close himself.

Newcastle were slightly better in a second half in which Chelsea took their foot off the accelerator, but Steve Bruce’s team are now only seven points ahead of third-frombottom Fulham, who have played a game less.

“There are seven or eight looking over their shoulders and there is still a long way to go,” Bruce said. “The accumulation of points is what you have to get and we haven’t got enough so we have to keep our nerve and get some more.”

Chelsea (3-4-2-1) Kepa 7; Azpilicueta 7, Christensen 7, Rudiger 7; Hudson-odoi 7 (James 78, 6), Jorginho 7, Kovacic 8, Alonso 7; Mount 7 (Kante 70, 6), Werner 8; Abraham 6 (Giroud 20, 6). Subs Mendy (g), Pulisic, Zouma, Chilwell, Ziyech, Emerson.

Newcastle United (4-1-4-1) Darlow 5; Krafth 4, Lascelles 6, Clark 6, Lewis 6; Hayden 6; Gayle 5 (Joelinton 64, 6), Willock 6 (Carroll 79, 6), Shelvey 6, Saint-maximin 5 (Fraser 72, 6); Almiron 5. Subs Dubravka (g), Dummett, Longstaff, Ritchie, Murphy, Longstaff.

Referee Peter Bankes (Merseyside).