Newcastle United earned a vital 2-0 win over Chelsea on Sunday to boost their Champions League qualification hopes at St James’ Park.
Both sides started the encounter levelled on point in the race for Champions League qualification but Newcastle United further enhanced their chances of returning to the competition with a deserved win.
The hosts took the lead in the second minute through Sandro Tonali’s close-range finish that stunned Maresca’s team.
Chelsea struggled to find their rhythm in the opening moments of the game before their day went from bad to worse when Nicolas Jackson was sent off in the 35th for elbowing Sven Botman.
The visitors improved in the second half with Nick Pope denying Marc Cucurella, and Enzo Fernandez from scoring.
Bruno Guimaraes put the icing on the cake in the 90th minute when his effort deflected off Malo Gusto to make it 2-0.
Newcastle United held on to seal a vital victory which moved them up to third three points clear of third-placed Chelsea ahead of the last two matches of the season.
Chelsea coach, Enzo Maresca was disappointed with the defeat.
He said: “Difficult. It’s already difficult 11-v-11 in this stadium, against this team. Playing one hour with 10 players has not been easy. I think the second half the team showed spirit, togetherness.
“We had a good run but my message was always the same to the players. The game is gone and finished. Think about the next one. Now that today’s game is finished, we need to be focused on Friday’s game. That is the next one.”
Up next for Chelsea is a home clash against Manchester United on Friday while Newcastle United will take on Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
