Chelsea Under-21s' winning streak in the Premier League 2 came to an end on Monday evening as we suffered a tough defeat to Newcastle United, despite a fightback with late goals from Ato Ampah and Donnell McNeilly.
Our first fixture of the week didn't end with the result we wanted, after heading into this league fixture in fine form after four wins in a row in the competition.
After a long journey up north, it was a frustrating evening for our Under-21s. The hosts got off to a strong start, opening the scoring just seven minutes in through Ben Parkinson. The striker then extended their advantage by converting a penalty, giving Newcastle a two-goal lead at the break.
Chelsea fought hard, but it was the Magpies who added a third shortly after the interval, with Charlie McArthur finishing what seemed like a well-rehearsed set-piece.
Despite the setback, we remained resilient. A late spark came when Ampah showed strength and composure to fire a clean strike into the bottom corner, leaving Aidan Harris with no chance in the Newcastle net.
Substitute McNeilly followed suit, finding the top corner with a powerful strike in the closing stages of stoppage time. However, our late comeback efforts were halted as the final whistle blew moments later.
Early setback
Our Monday evening league fixture got off to a cagey start, with both teams assessing each other in the opening minutes. The hosts broke the deadlock on their home turf, setting the tone for what would be a challenging encounter.
The goal came from a Newcastle set-piece. A corner was whipped in just under the crossbar and, although Travis Hernes’ flicked header was blocked by a Blues defender, Parkinson pounced on the loose ball and squeezed it in between Max Merrick and his near post from close range.
Chelsea didn’t back down and the goal seemed to give us the extra push to fight back. Our first shot at goal came soon after, when Richard Olise played a smart ball to Brazilian forward Deivid Washington in the area. He twisted and turned past the Newcastle defenders, but his powerful low shot narrowly missed, skimming inches wide of the post.
However, the Magpies kept up the pressure and were awarded a penalty after Parkinson charged into the box. His initial shot was saved by Merrick but, as he chased the rebound, Harrison Murray-Campbell caught him in attempt to block, prompting the referee to point to the spot. Parkinson stepped up and calmly converted, sending the ball straight down the middle to double Newcastle's lead.
Looking for a response
Chelsea needed to respond, so we pushed forward in search of a way back into the game. Winger Ampah sprinted upfield and made a clever cutback for captain Harvey Vale, who clipped the ball into the area. Jimmy-Jay Morgan stretched to meet it with a header, but the chance went over the bar, denying us the goal we needed.
By the half-hour mark, we started to find our rhythm and grow in possession. Ishe Samuels-Smith delivered a superb whipped ball into the area and Morgan sprinted onto it, connecting with a header. Unfortunately, Sven Botman got in front and put the ball wide, denying us once more.
The Magpies weren’t backing down. Parkinson remained a constant threat, testing the Blues defenders with two consecutive attempts. First, he met Anthony Munda’s chipped ball with a header that smashed against the crossbar. He then latched onto a Lewis Miley cutback, only to be denied by a block on the line from Kaiden Wilson.
We kept pushing, determined to pull one back, though it was a frustrating first half. Trailing 2-0, we knew we needed more aggression in the second half to turn things around.
Filipe Coelho turned to his bench for the restart of the second half, bringing on three substitutes - Samuel Rak-Sakyi, Donnell McNeilly and Alex Matos, who was making his comeback after returning from injury.
Disappointingly, it was Newcastle who created the first real danger after the changes. Trevan Sanusi collected the ball and used tricky footwork to weave into the penalty area, but his drilled strike was blocked by Wilson. It was another crucial block by the tall defender.
Our resilience came to life when we responded with a swift counter-attack. Samuels-Smith played a long ball to Vale, who sprinted upfield with Brodi Hughes supporting him on the right. Hughes squared the ball to our captain, who was positioned well for a shot. Frustratingly, he couldn't keep his shot down.
Once again, it was our opponents who were clinical in front of goal, and they found their third of the evening through another well-executed set-piece. A whipped free-kick from Jay Turner-Cooke was met by McArthur, who thumped a header into the back of the net, extending the Magpies' lead.
Not giving up
Coelho's side didn’t stop believing, though. We pulled one back through Ampah’s composed first-time finish. He connected with Vale's cutback and calmly slotted the ball into the bottom corner with a clean, sharp shot.
With that momentum, we continued to battle and managed to find a last-minute stoppage-time goal through a substitute duo. Rak-Sakyi did well in the midst of a scramble inside the penalty area, spotting McNeilly. Our striker eventually managed to manoeuvre into space in a crowded box and hammered the ball into the corner.
However, time wasn’t on our side, with just seconds left to play. The final whistle blew moments after the restart, leaving us empty-handed as we returned to Cobham, missing out on any Premier League 2 points.
What's next
Chelsea Under-21s will be in action on Saturday as we host Bournemouth at Kingmeadow for our final fixture of the year in the Premier League Cup, with the game kicking off at midday.
Any Chelsea season ticket holders or members, as well as all supporters aged under 20, can claim a free ticket to the match here until 24 hours before kick-off. Tickets remain on general sale to all others priced at £4 each online or at the Kingsmeadow ticket office until 10am on the day of the game.
The teams
Chelsea (4-2-3-1): Max Merrick; Brodi Hughes, Kaiden Wilson (Zak Sturge 79), Harrison Murray-Campbell, Ishe Samuels-Smith; Richard Olise (Alex Matos h-t), Reiss Russell-Denny (Samuel Rak-Sakyi h-t); Harvey Vale (c), Deivid Washington, Ato Ampah; Jimmy-Jay Morgan (Donnell McNeilly h-t)Unused sub:Hudson SandsScorers: Ampah 77, McNeilly 90+3Booked: Murray-Campbell 16, Morgan 45
Newcastle United (4-3-3): Aidan Harris, Leo Shahar, Alex Murphy, Sven Botman (Cathal Heffernan 60), Charlie McArthur (c), Travis Hernes, Trevan Sanusi (Josh Donaldson 79), Lewis Miley (Alfie Harrison h-t), Ben Parkinson, Anthony Munda, Jay Turner-CookeUnused subs: James Taylor, Darren PalmerScorers: Parkinson 7, pen 16, McArthur 70Booked: Murphy 79, Turner-Cooke 81