Mykhailo Mudryk scored a sensational solo goal as Chelsea kept alive slender hopes of qualifying for Europe via the Premier League with a 3-2 win over Newcastle at Stamford Bridge.
At 2-1 late in the second half, the result was in the balance but it was tipped decisively in Chelsea’s favour by a moment of magic from the substitute, taking the ball off Conor Gallagher’s foot at top speed and bamboozling his way beyond defender Fabian Schar before rounding the goalkeeper and finishing.
The win marked a significant step forward for Mauricio Pochettino’s side, who have so often allowed balanced duels – as this undoubtedly was – to slip away from them.
Nicolas Jackson gave them a sixth-minute lead with a smart backheeled goal from Cole Palmer’s shot, before Alexander Isak rifled Newcastle level at the end of the half.
Palmer got his 13th of the season to restore the lead, a brilliant, driven finish from range.
Mudryk’s goal with 15 minutes to go looked to have settled it before Jacob Murphy made Chelsea think with a superb 90th-minute strike, but the hosts hung on for a deserved win.
Struggling in 11th, they had needed all the aid they could muster, and were promptly handed a boost by Newcastle defender Sven Botman after six minutes.
Malo Gusto’s low cross was well pitched but should have been an easy mop-up job for Botman. Instead, he carelessly swept the ball to the right boot of Palmer, whose tame shot from outside the box was intelligently flicked home via the deftest backheeled touch from Jackson.
Raheem Sterling looked determined that a strong start should not go to waste, muscling beyond Tino Livramento down the left and offloading to Jackson to strike low at goal, this time easily saved by Martin Dubravka.
Yet the one-goal lead was fragile, and Chelsea were exposed when Trevoh Chalobah headed a weak clearance straight to Anthony Gordon who shot wide.
Isak was inches from connecting with Murphy’s cross as it zipped across the face of goal, then skied over from two yards out as the ball came back in, comfortably the visitors’ clearest chance of the half so far.
European qualification through the league is still not beyond Chelsea. Victory here would take them to within four points of seventh-place West Ham with a game in hand, but consistency has been this team’s downfall under Pochettino.
In the final minutes of the half, they allowed Newcastle back in. The hitherto impressive Gusto was caught trying to juggle the ball in midfield. Chalobah raced up to take charge, but he was dispossessed by Bruno Guimaraes and was caught horribly out of position.
The ball broke to Isak, who skipped inside the box and curled an exquisite shot around Axel Disasi and beyond the dive of Djordje Petrovic.
Chelsea might still have led at the break had Sterling’s driven 18-yard effort been hit either side of Dubravka. In truth though, 1-1 was a fair conclusion to a balanced half.
Sterling came close again at the start of the second period, bursting into the box and lashing a shot narrowly wide at the near post.
Chelsea were looking the more confident side on the ball, penning Newcastle inside their own half, and they retook the lead on 57 minutes.
Enzo Fernandez collected the ball centrally and fed it in to Palmer, receiving with his back to goal 20 yards out. The home side’s top scorer took one touch to turn inside and then crashed it with his left foot inside Dubravka’s near post.
Sterling should have put it beyond doubt minutes later, carrying the ball around the goalkeeper but denied on the line by Dan Burn who was covering.
There were a few nerve-jangling moments as the visitors tested Chelsea’s defence with balls into the box that were cleared not wholly convincingly.
Then came a moment of magic from Mudryk and, despite Murphy’s late rocket, at last a glimmer of a happy ending to a turbulent season.
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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