Chelsea players could be seen surrounding the referee as he walked off at half-time
Chelsea players surround referee Andy Madley as Robert Sanchez reacts to being shown a yellow card
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Chelsea players surrounded referee Andy Madley as they walked off at half-time with Newcastle United in full control.
After protesting furiously over some 50-50 calls, the Blues - led by Reece James - made their point and got into the ear of Madley and his team as they headed off for the interval. Whether or not Madley was swayed by the angry Chelsea stars is up for debate but one of the first things he did after the break was award the visitors a free-kick that would alter the path of this Premier League contest.
The big decision that went in Chelsea's favour is obviously Trevoh Chalobah's 54th-minute challenge on Anthony Gordon but Italian boss Enzo Maresca admitted in his Press conference that there was a need to tame the crowd at St James' Park.
The ex-Leicester chief said: "For sure, in the first half we have things that we can do better, but the way they showed in the second half, character, togetherness, they have to feel proud.
"Being 2-0 down against Newcastle away, in this stadium, in this noise, in this environment, it is not easy, not many teams could do that, and they have done it.
"The key to the first half for me was the first goal we conceded, because after a few minutes we conceded a goal and the game goes in the direction that they want. So that goal we conceded for me was the key.
"Then in the second half, we scored twice, we could have scored more goals, we changed some things at half-time. But at this stadium, 2-0 down at half-time, you come back, it is not easy for any team."
Newcastle's mentality comes under question
That's now 13 points dropped from winning positions for Newcastle this season and their inability to manage games, especially when on top, is hurting them.
Failing to hold on to leads has been a killer for Howe's men, and with better control, they'd be in the top four and pushing for the bigger prizes.
Howe did not welcome a comment about cup form papering over cracks in the build-up, but may have to make a call on prioritising one of the domestic competitions or face not qualifying for Europe next term via the Premier League.
After the game, he said: "It's painful for us because we have been in this position before. All we can do is learn from these experiences and try to improve. If we had those points back, we would have been in a different position."
Nick Woltemade suggests Magpies are close to their best
The German international netted twice to take his tally for the club to nine in all competitions. He was denied his hat-trick after being hooked with 18 minutes left.
But as he enjoyed improved service levels, he left the field knowing that Chelsea has been on the end of a real scare on Saturday. He positively said to TNT Sports afterwards: "If you saw how we played in the first half, we can win against every team."
However, then he questioned United's work at the other end of the pitch and said: "I don't know why we conceded two goals.
"It happened. We'll keep working on it and maybe next time, we can play 90 minutes like that."
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