Chelsea v Newcastle: Fixture pile-up to leave Toon feeling Blue

Chelsea, unlike most, will play their third game of the new Premier League campaign on Saturday, and hope to maintain a 100 per cent win record.

They welcome Newcastle to Stamford Bridge, as 1/2 hopes for success in the aftermath of a 2-0 win away to Wigan, and a 4-2 home triumph over Reading on Wednesday.

The visiting Magpies are aiming to cope with a congested fixture list meanwhile, and enter this game just 48 hours after taking on Atromitos in Greece.

A 1-1 stalemate emanated from that Europa League tie, and the Toon would be delighted to leave London with a draw here too, with that possibility a 3/1 shot.

Alan Pardew’s men can also be backed at 11/2 to win at the home of the European champions, and punters remembering their 2-0 success here last season could invest.

However, with the Blues’ new additions settling in seamlessly, and the likes of Fernando Torres returning to form, it may be better to side with Chelsea here.

Newcastle’s win in London last season was their only one in the last ten league encounters between the sides, whilst Chelsea have won without conceding in four of those matches.

It is 5/4 the home side keep a clean sheet here, and an even more appealing 13/8 that they win to nil again, as they also did at Wigan last Sunday.

Although the sides have traded victories in recent clashes, with two draws and a win apiece emanating from the past four encounters, a notable pattern has developed.

Exactly two goals have been scored in half of these recent ties, and could do so again at 11/4 this weekend.

Alternatively, Chelsea may well be worth backing as 13/2 hopes to record a second 2-0 victory in three Premier League games.

As aforementioned, certain Blues players appear to be rekindling their best form, and will be eager to continue in that vein.

Fernando Torres in particular will hope to follow up his midweek strike with another goal here, and he can be backed as 4/1 favourite to open the scoring.

It seems only a matter of time before his new teammate Eden Hazard opens his account meanwhile, with the Belgian 7/1 to notch first.

For the visiting Toon Army, Papiss Cisse proved their hero here last term when firing a brace, and the Senegalese hitman is a long 8/1 to hit the first goal.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.