Newcastle United vs Chelsea LIVE: What time is it, what channel is it on, where can I watch it, odds and more
A look ahead to the Premier League fixture at St James’ Park
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Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea know they cannot afford to not beat Newcastle if they are to have any hope of Champions League football next year. The 1-1 draw with Huddersfield leaves Chelsea two points behind Liverpool in fourth, and the Merseyside club have a far superior goal difference, too.
Antonio Conte is almost certainly leaving after this game, regardless of the final outcome. But usurping Liverpool for fourth would be an excellent parting gift. Former Blues boss Rafa Benitez has done a brilliant job at Newcastle, but the season has soured somewhat in recent weeks. Newcastle have lost their last four games and are now level on points with three other sides, but tenth on goal difference.
Kenedy is ineligible against his parent club, and Newcastle will miss the influential Brazilian. They performed well against Spurs on Wednesday but came away with nothing, and given Chelsea need a win, it may be tough going at St James’ Park.
Follow all of the action below.
What time does it start?
Newcastle United vs Chelsea kicks off at 3pm.
Where can I watch it?
The game is live on Sky Sports Premier League from 2.45pm
It’s a big game for…
It could be Eden Hazard’s last Chelsea game, with the Belgian heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid. Hazard hasn’t had a vintage season, and Roberto Martinez will be hoping he finds some form ahead of the World Cup.
Best Stat
93.2% - Andreas Christensen has the best pass completion percentage in the Premier League this season.
Remember when…
A Moussa Sissoko double downed Chelsea in 2013 at St James’ Park. Not a single one of the 13 players used by Newcastle that day are still at the club.
Player to watch…
Jonjo Shelvey is playing some of his best football at the moment, and there is a growing feeling that the midfielder’s excellent range of passing would be an asset for England at the World Cup. One final strong showing against Chelsea could book his seat on the plane.
Past-three meetings…
- Chelsea 3 (Batshuayi 2, Alonso) Newcastle 0 (), FA Cup, January 2018
- Chelsea 3 (Hazard 2, Morata) Newcastle 1 (Gayle), Premier League, December 2017
- Chelsea 5 (Costa, Pedro 2, Willian, Traore) Newcastle 1 (Townsend), Premier League, February 2016
Form Guide
- Newcastle: WWLLLL
- Chelsea: WWWWWD
Odds
- Newcastle Win: 21/4
- Chelsea Win: 11/20
- Draw: 16/5
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the final day of the 2017/18 Premier League season.
Harry Latham-Coyle will be with you a couple of hours before kick-off, but in the meantime why not read Miguel Delaney's review of a strange but ultimately fascinating campaign:
Good afternoon all, and welcome to the final day of the 2017-18 Premier League Season. The Independent's live blog will have updates from every game as the season reaches its conclusion. My name is Harry Latham-Coyle and I will be with you throughout the afternoon.
We are a little under an hour away from team news being confirmed for this afternoon's ten games. Let's run down what is still to play for today...
The battle for fourth place is still on, but Liverpool are certainly in the driving seat. Chelsea could only manage a draw with Huddersfield in the week, leaving them two points behind Liverpool and with an insurmountable difference in goal difference. Chelsea must beat Newcastle at St James' Park and hope Brighton can shock Liverpool at Anfield.
It will take something truly astonishing for Swansea to survive. They lost at home to Southampton on Tuesday night, taking their opponents three points clear and with a far-superior goal difference. A ten-goal swing is needed, and Swansea haven't scored in their last four games. However...
Swansea play relegated Stoke, who have nothing to play for. And former manager Mark Hughes is now in charge of Southampton. Could Stoke roll over?
Southampton host Manchester City, about the only team in the country one could envisage scoring more than five, particularly as they chase the victory that would take them to 100 points for the season. It would be a truly extraordinary escape for Swansea, but anything can happen in football. 4-0 at the Liberty Stadium, 0-6 at St Mary's would send Southampton down. Surely not...
There is still the battle for the Golden Boot to sort out, too. Mohamed Salah has 31 goals and Harry Kane 28 heading into this afternoon. Kane loves a late-season hat-trick, and although Salah is expected to start for Liverpool, he may not play the full game with the Champions League Final just a couple of weeks away. It is again unlikely, but we've seen odd things occur on the final day before.
The top four assist-makers in this season's Premier League all ply their trade at the Etihad, and one of Kevin De Bruyne and Leroy Sane will be the assist king this season. Sane drew level with his teammate against Brighton on Wednesday with a hat-trick of assists, taking him to 15 on the season. De Bruyne did not play in that game. Either, or both, could notch at least a couple more today.
Arsenal, and perhaps the Premier League, will bid farewell to Arsene Wenger today. His side are at the John Smith's Stadium to meet Huddersfield, who celebrated wildly on Wednesday after the draw at Stamford Bridge that secured survival. An entertaining Arsenal win would be a fitting conclusion to a remarkable career at the club for one of the Premier League's greatest managers.
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