As for Chelsea, the victory marks their first at home in the Premier League under the watchful eye of Guus Hiddink, and it is one that extends their unbeaten run to 12 games. As a result, they now sit in 12th place in the table, two points away from entering the top half and eight points behind fifth-place Manchester United. They must face in-form Southampton in two weeks' time, whilst Newcastle have two and a half weeks off before meeting Stoke City at the start of March.
The referee blows his whistle for the final time and brings an end to a thoroughly miserable day for Newcastle, who will head back to St. James' Park with all the confidence they gained from the win over West Brom knocked out of them. From start to finish they continually struggled to deal with Chelsea, who ran rings around them when pushing forward and found it easy to deal with their lacklustre efforts at the other end. Only Townsend, who was easily the Magpies' best player, was able to make the hosts pay, but he was the only bright spark in what was a game to forget for Steve McClaren's struggling side.
FULL-TIME: CHELSEA 5-1 NEWCASTLE UNITED
There seems to be a late problem for Janmaat, who looks to have injured himself whilst stretching to deal with a low cross from Matic. After briefly receiving medical treatment on the pitch he makes his way off to be looked at further, and it seems as if this could be a big problem for the Dutchman.
Hazard powers forward on a marauding run before working the ball over to Azpilicueta on the right flank, but, with only a minute left on the clock, the Spaniard decides to slow the pace of the game down instead of unleashing a cross and holds on to the ball.
The fourth official has indicated that there will be three minutes of added time.
A. Townsend
Goal
GOAL! Newcastle have pulled one back! Townsend, who has easily been the visitors' best player today, embarks on a brilliant run as he cuts inside from the right wing, and as soon as he meets the edge of the Chelsea penalty area he unleashes a curling low strike that flies past the outstretched arm of Courtois and into the bottom right-hand corner of the net. Game on? Probably not...
J. Colback
Assist
Assist Jack Colback
Doumbia, who has been largely anonymous since coming on to the pitch, holds up the ball well and wins his side a free-kick near the halfway line. It's taken short and sent over to Janmaat, but the Dutchman's chipped cross from the right wing is completely mishit and bounces out for a goal-kick.
What a chance for Hazard! Fabregas picks up the ball near the halfway line and quickly sends a brilliant lofted pass over the top of the Newcastle defence and into the path of the Belgian. He beats his marker with ease and brings the ball down well before going one-on-one with Elliot, but at the last minute he loses his footing and ends up poking his close-range strike just past the near post.
Newcastle try to string together a series of passes in the middle of the pitch, but they've lost all confidence and are now aimlessly knocking the ball around with little effort, which is making life incredibly easy for Chelsea. It's been a thoroughly awful afternoon for the visitors, and, unsurprisingly, it looks as if all they want is for it to finally come to an end.
César Azpilicueta
Assist
That was a wonderful low cross from Azpilicueta to set up Traore, but once again Aarons was beaten far too easily and didn't look at all comfortable defending against the marauding Spaniard.
B. Traoré
Goal
GOAL! Chelsea aren't done just yet! Hazard and Azpilicueta link up wonderfully well on the right wing, with the duo beating both Lascelles and Aarons far too easily. The Spaniard then sends a lovely low cross into the middle of the penalty area, where Traore beats his marker before firing a thumping shot past Elliot and into the back of the net for his first ever Premier League goal. What a moment for the youngster!
R. Loftus-Cheek
Willian
Willian receives a standing ovation from the Chelsea fans as he's replaced by Loftus-Cheek for the final 10 minutes of the game.
Chelsea come back once again, with Willian and Hazard thoroughly enjoying themselves on the edge of the Newcastle box. The ball then rolls over to Pedro, who leaves it for Fabregas, but his fellow Spaniard ends up thumping his 20-yard strike into the sea of black and white shirts camped in front of him.
A swinging corner for Newcastle can only find Courtois, who is easily able to cut out the danger on the edge of the six-yard box. He then sends a brilliant throw up to the halfway line, where it finds Hazard, and the attacking midfielder darts towards the byline before sending a dangerous cross into the middle of the box that Janmaat does well to cut out at the vital moment.
Sissoko pushes forward through the centre of the pitch before working the ball out towards Aarons on the left wing. The full-back tries to find his way into the Chelsea penalty area but is quickly closed down and loses possession before he can get a cross away.
A terrible cross-field pass by Pedro is sent straight into the feet of Doumbia, who is in a dangerous position inside the Chelsea half of the pitch, but luckily for the Spaniard the striker's first touch is poor and allows Ivanovic to deal with the danger comfortably.
S. Doumbia
A. Mitrović
Mitrovic, who has had a very difficult afternoon, makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Doumbia, who comes on to make his Newcastle debut.
The set-piece is taken short and sent into the right-hand side of the Newcastle penalty area, where Fabregas and Traore link up well with a series of lovely passes before Lascelles is finally able to clear the danger.
A low cross from the left flank can only find Aarons inside the Newcastle penalty area, but, despite being under no pressure whatsoever, the youngster ends up sending a panicked clearance out of play for a corner. It's taken short and worked over to Willian, who is then barged into by Townsend, resulting in a free-kick for Chelsea in a dangerous position on the right wing.
J. Lascelles
C. Tioté
Tiote makes his way off the pitch to be replaced by Lascelles, indicating that Newcastle will now switch to playing three at the back.
The pace of the game has slowed down dramatically since the fourth goal went in, and Chelsea are now able to calmly and comfortably pass the ball around under very little pressure from the visitors.
Traore is quickly able to get involved in the game and showcases his impressive skills as he twists and turns inside the Newcastle penalty area before earning his side a corner. The visitors now have plenty of bodies back inside their own half of the pitch as they try to avoid falling even further behind.
J. Shelvey
Yellow Card
Shelvey scythes Fabregas to the ground with a poorly timed and rash challenge from behind, leaving the referee with no choice but to show him a yellow card.
B. Traoré
Diego Costa
With all three points firmly in the back, Hiddink has decided to rest Costa, who he replaces with Traore.
Cesc Fàbregas
Assist
That was a beautiful pass by Fabregas, who picked out Pedro with perfection. Time and time again he has been left in far too much space by the Newcastle midfielders, who are failing to close him down.
Pedro
Goal
GOAL! It's now 4-0! Fabregas picks up the ball in acres of space near the halfway line and quickly sends a beautiful lofted pass over the head of Taylor and onto the chest of Pedro. After skipping past the centre-back the Spaniard flies through on goal and goes one-on-one with Elliot, who he beats once again with a well placed side-footed strike.
And now Mitrovic goes close! Janmaat, who has looked better since the start of the second half, beats Rahman down the right flank before sending a low cross towards the edge of the six-yard box. A scuffed clearance from Cahill flies up into the air and down into the feet of the Newcastle striker, but he ends up firing his strike just wide of the far post.
Chelsea go close again! This time it's Willian who sends a dangerous cross into the heart of the Newcastle box after comfortably skipping past Aarons, but a slight touch from Elliot is enough to send it away from Costa before Colback clears the danger.
Newcastle are given another warning sign by Chelsea, who, after a slow start to the second half, are now firmly on the front foot. Azpilicueta finds himself in space on the right wing and immediately curls a lovely cross into the middle of the penalty area. It finds Costa, who brings the ball down well before firing an acrobatic overhead kick that flies into the hands of Elliot before the linesman's flag is raised for offside.
Chelsea go close! The resulting set-piece bounces towards Matic at the near post, and the Serbian quickly pokes the ball back towards the penalty spot. Several blue shirts quickly dart towards it but Shelvey is just about able to cut out the danger at the vital moment.
Costa charges down the right flank before being cynically pulled down by Aarons, resulting in a free-kick for Chelsea. They take it quickly and send it short to striker, but he's unable to find a way into the penalty area and has to settle for a corner.
Mitrovic limps back on to the pitch as Newcastle continue to push bodies forward. They work the ball around well before a low cross from Townsend finds Shelvey in front of goal, but Cahill throws his body in the way of the midfielder's shot to stop it from troubling Courtois.
Mitrovic looks to be really struggling after being caught from behind by a poor challenge from Fabregas in the build-up to Newcastle's last chance on goal. He makes his way off the pitch as play resumes once again, but the corner is dealt with well by Chelsea.
Mitrovic does well to hold up the ball on the edge of the Chelsea penalty area before spinning and teeing up Sissoko, who immediately tries to pick out Townsend at the far post. It almost meets the winger but just as it's about to do so Azpilicueta pops up to fire the ball out for a corner.
Hazard twists and turns on the right wing and beats Shelvey with ease before cutting a well placed low cross back to Costa, but the striker's first touch is poor and allows the Newcastle back line to deal with the danger before he can spin and shoot.
J. Colback
G. Wijnaldum
Newcastle have made a substitution during the half-time break, and it's an unsurprising one, with Wijnaldum making way for Colback.
And we're underway once again!
The two teams are making their way back out onto the pitch ahead of the start of the second half.
It's been a first half to forget for Newcastle, who have looked incredibly lacklustre at both ends of the pitch and, as a result, head into the break with a mountain to climb in the second period. The start of the game was always going to be important, and the visitors, who seemed to be half asleep, continually left far too much space available for the Chelsea midfield. As a result, Pedro, Hazard and, in particular, Willian were able to constantly run riot as they picked apart the Magpies on the break. As a result, there looks to be no way back for Steve McClaren's side, who are currently limping towards their third defeat in four games.
HALF-TIME: CHELSEA 3-0 NEWCASTLE UNITED
Willian picks up the ball in far too much space just outside of the Newcastle penalty area and is clumsily clattered into by Sissoko just as he's about to unleash a pass, resulting in a free-kick in a very dangerous position. The Brazilian steps up and fires a brilliant curling shot towards the bottom left-hand corner of the net, but Elliot does well to tip it round the post with a brilliant diving save.
The fourth official has indicated that there will be two minutes of added time.
After receiving medical treatment for a few moments, Hazard limps back on to the pitch and play resumes once again. Newcastle try to quickly push forward and work the ball up to Townsend on the left flank, but the winger is immediately put under pressure by Azpilicueta and Pedro and ends up being dispossessed by the Spaniard.
And now Hazard seems to be struggling after being clattered into from behind by a clumsy challenge from Janmaat. The Belgian is still on the floor holding the back of his left leg whilst the referee gives the Newcastle right-back a stern talking to.
Townsend, who has arguably been one of Newcastle's best performers thus far, does well to get down the left wing before chipping a dangerous cross into the middle of the Chelsea box, but there are no black and white shirts there to meet it, making it easy for Cahill to deal with the danger.
A. Baba
J. Terry
This doesn't look good for Terry, who has been forced into making way for Rahman with what looks like a muscle injury. He clashed with Mitrovic earlier in the game and has been moving gingerly ever since, so Hiddink has decided not to risk his captain. His replacement will play on the left, meaning that Azpilicueta will switch to the right and Ivanovic will move into the centre of the Chelsea back four.
Another mistake almost makes it 4-0! A terrible attempted pass from Shelvey fails to find Coloccini and instead cut out by Costa, who then pokes the ball over to Pedro. The Spanish attacking midfielder penetrates the penalty area before trying to test Elliot, but his side-footed shot is poorly hit and ends up being easily saved by the Newcastle goalkeeper.
Chance for Wijnaldum! Newcastle are finally able to push forward on a decent looking attacking move thanks to a good run down the right wing by Janmaat. The right-back charges towards the byline before cutting a bouncing pass back to his fellow Dutchman, but the midfielder's volleyed effort is sent straight into the hands of Courtois in the middle of the goal.
The pace of the game has slowed down somewhat, with Newcastle failing to threaten whenever pushing forward and Chelsea looking incredibly comfortable when in possession. The visitors are still seeing their fair share of the ball but are finding it increasingly difficult to trouble the hosts when attempting to break out of their own half of the pitch.
Terry almost makes it 4-0! Chelsea patiently work their way down the right wing before earning themselves a corner, which is curled by Willian towards the edge of the six-yard box. The captain beats Coloccini with ease before unleashing a bullet header, but it takes a deflection off a black and white shirt that sends it flying out of play.
A poor pass from Sissoko is easily cut out by Fabregas, and once again the Spaniard spins quickly before kick-starting another dangerous Chelsea counter-attack. He tries to pick out Costa with his long pass forward, but this time Coloccini is just about able to get back in time before knocking the ball back to Elliot.
Hazard and Ivanovic link up well on the right-hand side of the Newcastle half of the pitch before the Belgian penetrates the visitors' penalty area, but he's unable to muscle his way past Tiote and ends up knocking the ball out of play for a goal-kick before he can send get a cross away.
Chance for Ivanovic! Pedro skips past both Janmaat and Tiote, the latter of whom fails to track the Spaniard's run, before cutting a great pass into the middle of the penalty area. It misses Costa but finds Ivanovic on the right-hand side, and the Serbian immediately fires a low strike that deflects off the foot of Aarons and out for a corner.
Newcastle are bossing possession, which has been the case for the vast majority of the game thus far, but are failing to do much with it. The Chelsea midfielders are doing well to put their opponents under plenty of pressure, which is continually frustrating the visitors.
Almost a costly mistake by Taylor! The centre-back, who has not enjoyed the best start to the game, to say the least, sends a poorly weighted pass back towards Elliot. The goalkeeper rushes out to meet it and is only just about to do so before being clattered into by Costa, who was incredibly close to poking a fourth goal past the under pressure shot-stopper.
S. Taylor
Yellow Card
Costa tries to break away on a quick run down the left flank but is cynically dragged to the ground by Taylor, who receives the first yellow card of the game as a result.
Diego Costa
Assist
Costa did brilliantly to beat Coloccini in the build-up to the goal, as the Argentine defender thought that he had successfully dealt with the striker only to fail to close him down enough when required.
Willian
Goal
GOAL! Chelsea are running riot! Newcastle lose the ball in the middle of the pitch, and they immediately break away on another quick counter-attack. Fabregas sends a wonderfully weighted pass up to the penalty area, where it finds Costa, and the striker does well to outrun Coloccini and hold up the ball before spinning and finding Willian. The Brazilian, who had made a great run into the box, is then easily able to beat Elliot with a thumping close-range strike that flies into the roof of the net. It's all gone wrong for the visitors, who have suffered a truly dreadful start to the game.
Newcastle win themselves a free-kick on the left flank, and from it Shelvey sends a looping cross into the heart of the Chelsea penalty area. It meets Sissoko, who does well to out-muscle his marker, but the midfielder can only send his headed effort bouncing into the hands of Courtois.
Once again, Newcastle look bright whilst embarking on a series of quick passes in front of the Chelsea penalty area, but just as Wijnaldum is about to shoot from 20 yards out he's dispossessed by a vital tackle from Fabregas, who does well to cut out the danger when needed.
Newcastle move the ball around well deep inside the Chelsea half of the pitch before Shelvey's chipped pass forward deflects off Fabregas and out for a corner. The set-piece fails to trouble the hosts but the ball eventually finds its way over to Townsend on the left wing. However, the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder's low cross is poor and is easily dealt with by Courtois.
Pedro
Goal
GOAL! Chelsea double their lead! The hosts try to break away on a quick counter-attack after dealing with Shelvey's poor free-kick, but Aarons seems to have the danger covered on the left flank. However, he spins and plays a terrible and underhit cross-field pass over towards Janmaat, where it's easily cut out by Pedro. The Spaniard flies through on goal and goes one-on-one with Elliot before beating the Newcastle goalkeeper with a beautiful side-footed shot that finds the bottom left-hand corner of the net.
Shelvey steps up and tries to pick out a teammate with a low cross towards the edge of the six-yard box, but it's completely mishit and is easily dealt with by the Chelsea defence.
Aarons and Townsend link up well down the left flank before the latter swings a cross towards the near post, but it's easily cut out by Cahill before it can find a black and white shirt. The centre-back's header goes out for a throw-in, which is taken quickly and results in a free-kick for the visitors after the aforementioned left-back is clumsily fouled by Ivanovic.
Diego Costa
Goal
GOAL! Chelsea take an early lead! Willian picks up the ball just inside the Newcastle half of the pitch and immediately spins around Tiote, who was beaten far too easily by the Brazilian. He then flies forward before threading a lovely throughball into the path of Costa, who out-muscles Taylor and meets the pass on the edge of the six-yard box before poking it under the body of Elliot and into the back of the net. What a start by the hosts!
Willian
Assist
That was excellent play by Willian, but questions have to be asked of Tiote, who left far too much space available for the Brazilian to exploit with his pace and skill.
Tiote slides into Fabregas and catches the legs of the Spaniard, resulting in another free-kick for Chelsea. This time it's 30 yards away from the Newcastle goal, and Willian curls his cross towards the middle of the penalty area. It's slightly underhit, however, and is easily cut out by Wijnaldum before Shelvey thumps the ball up towards the halfway line.
Early chance for Matic! A thumping free-kick from Fabregas is only half dealt with by Townsend, who clumsily knocks the ball into the path of the Serbian. He immediately unleashes a rocket of a strike from the edge of the Newcastle penalty area, but it ends up flying a few yards wide of the near post and out for a goal-kick.
And we're off! Newcastle get us underway, attacking from left to right.
The two sides are making their way out onto the pitch, with just a few minutes to go until kick-off.
Meanwhile, Newcastle boss Steve McClaren has named an unchanged side to the one that started the aforementioned win against West Brom, with Aleksandar Mitrovic, who scored in last weekend’s clash, once again leading the line for the Magpies.
Guus Hiddink has decided to make three changes to the Chelsea side that drew 1-1 with Manchester United in their last Premier League outing, with Gary Cahill, Pedro and Eden Hazard coming into the starting line-up to replace John Obi Mikel, Oscar and Kurt Zouma, the latter of whom will be out for the rest of the season after damaging his anterior cruciate ligament six days ago.
Newcastle United substitutes: Darlow, Lascelles, Saivet, Colback, Riviere, Perez, Doumbia.
Newcastle United XI (4-2-3-1): Elliot; Janmaat, Taylor, Coloccini, Aarons; Shelvey, Tiote; Sissoko, Wijnaldum, Townsend; Mitrovic.
Chelsea substitutes: Begovic, Rahman, Traore, Mikel, Loftus-Cheek, Kenedy, Remy.
Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Courtois; Ivanovic, Cahill, Terry, Azpilicueta; Fabregas, Matic; Pedro, Willian, Hazard; Costa.
There’s just over 15 minutes left to go until kick-off, so let’s have a look at how the two teams will be lining up afternoon…
A tough campaign thus far means that Newcastle head to the capital sitting just outside of the relegation zone, just one point ahead of fierce rivals Sunderland - who shocked everybody by beating Manchester United 2-1 earlier this afternoon - and equal on points with 18th-place Norwich City, who held West Ham United to a 2-2 draw today. Disappointing back-to-back defeats against Watford and Everton were followed by last weekend’s much-needed 1-0 win at home to West Bromwich Albion, resulting in the Magpies climbing out of the bottom three, but they are continuing to struggle at the wrong end of the Premier League table. To make matters worse, they have had a difficult time away from home since winning against Tottenham Hotspur exactly two months ago, resulting in all of their previous four league trips ending in defeats. In that time they have scored just once, and that goal came from fringe player Jamal Lascelles in his only start of the season.
Since returning to Chelsea for his second stint as interim manager, Guus Hiddink has failed to be beaten in his first 10 games as head coach, a run that has temporarily halted the reigning champions’ slide down the Premier League table. Whilst draws have been welcomed at Stamford Bridge, wins have proven hard to come by, resulting in the Blues winning just two league games since the start of 2016. As a result, they remain in unfamiliar territory in the bottom half of the table, 11 points away from a European qualification spot and six clear of the dreaded drop zone. Whilst this season - one that the club will be keen to quickly forget - has been largely written off already, today’s hosts will still be desperate to end the campaign on a high, and that could start this afternoon with a victory against a side that need a win just as badly.
Good afternoon and welcome to our live text commentary of today’s Premier League game between Chelsea and Newcastle United at Stamford Bridge.
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