It's another chance to gain points on the equivalent fixtures last season as the Blues aim to banish the memory of our most recent league defeat. Club historian Rick Glanvill and club statistican Paul Dutton trail the Tynesiders visit…

TALKING POINTS
Victory this weekend would mean Roberto Di Matteo's men maintaining the three-point lead at the top of the table until next weekend, when the European champions contest the UEFA Super Cup in Monaco while the rest of the Barclays Premier League plays catch-up.

Frank Lampard continues to carve his name in the bark of our club's history. His successful penalties against Wigan and Reading (identical, it has to be said) were Chelsea's first ever in consecutive games from the start of the season.

He and right-back Branislav Ivanovic are our joint league top scorers. In all competitions our skipper in Munich has now hit 188 goals. That is five shy of Kerry Dixon's total of 193, completed in March 1992, and 14 behind Bobby Tambling's club record 202, set over 43 years ago in April 1969.

Eden Hazard's sensational start with the Blues is confirmed by his position as leading goal-maker according to official Premier League statistics (which equate penalties won to assists), with a remarkable five in two games; he is also the most fouled player (eight times). Likewise Petr Cech has made the most saves to date (15) and John Terry the most clearances (eight).

KEY STAT The Magpies are unbeaten in their last four visits to Stamford Bridge.

Newcastle arrive in London 48 hours after their Europa League qualifying trip to Athens, a 1-1 draw at the home of Atromitos. When push came to shove manager Alan Pardew felt confident enough to omit several key players from match against the side fourth in the Greek Super League.

As a result the likes of defender Fabricio Coloccini, midfielder Cheikh Tioté, and striker Demba Ba should be fresh for this Saturday evening clash.

In May, largely as a result of the shrewd signing of dynamic players such as Ba and Papiss Cissé, Pardew masterminded the Magpies' highest finish since Alan Shearer's swansong 2003/04 season.

Toon kicked off this campaign with a slightly fortuitous 2-1 win over our north London neighbours Spurs in unfamiliar Tyneside heat. Tottenham had the better of the game in almost all but goals. Once again the ability of their creative players to conjure goals from nothing made the difference for Newcastle.

Opportunism was the hallmark of their 2-0 win on the Fulham Road last May. This was traditionally a graveyard of the north-easterners' ambitions, with 6-0s, 5-0s and a regular sprinkling of 4-0 scorelines. But the Blues' last win in this fixture was a 2-1 back in December 2007.

This will be the Blues' first 5.30pm Saturday kick-off since Wigan away last season, a 1-1 draw. The last at Stamford Bridge ended in a comprehensive 3-1 victory over Everton. West Brom were also beaten 2-1 at home in August in this time slot.

Make a note in your diaries, by the way: Chelsea's defence of the Champions League starts with the group stage draw in Monaco on Thursday 30 August at 5pm.

KEY TWEET Which teams would you like champions Chelsea to be grouped with on Thursday in the Champions League draw? #CFCPMB

Barclays Premier League fixtures
Saturday
Swansea v West Ham 12.45pm - Sky Sports
Aston Villa v Everton 3pm
Manchester United v Fulham 3pm
Norwich v QPR 3pm
Southampton v Wigan 3pm
Sunderland v Reading 3pm
Tottenham v West Brom 3pm
Chelsea v Newcastle 5.30pm - ESPN
Sunday
Stoke v Arsenal 1.30pm - Sky Sports
Liverpool v Manchester City 4pm - Sky Sports

Barclays Premier League
Top		Pld	Gd	Pts
1	Chelsea	2	4	6
2	Fulham	1	5	3
3	Swansea	1	5	3
4	West Brom	1	3	3
5	Man City	1	1	3
6	Newcastle	1	1	3
7	Everton	1	1	3
8	West Ham	1	1	3

 

WE HAVE HISTORY
This fixture was first played in Division One on Monday 23 September 1907 - only the second home game played by the Pensioners in the top flight. Having been whacked 0-6 by Nottingham Forest two days earlier, Chelsea beat the league champions 2-0 through goals by Jimmy Windridge and Billy Bridgeman -a clever shot from Martin Moran's cross. 'The better side won a capital match,' declared the Daily Express.

Chelsea fans of a certain age fondly recall a pair of emphatic Second Division wins in 1980. The first, January that year, was under Geoff Hurst. Mickey Fillery, Clive Walker and Tommy Langley were joined on the scoresheet by Toon centre-back David Barton to make it 4-0 in front of over 32,000.

Fillery and Walker hit the net again at the Bridge in October, along with defender Gary Chivers and recent signing Colin Lee, who grabbed himself a hat-trick against hapless moustachioed keeper Kevin Carr. This was one of Chris Waddle's first matches for the Magpies, and he was subbed. The 6-0 final score made it 10-0 on aggregate for the calendar year.

Coincidentally, all three matches played between the two teams at the Bridge in the month of August, in 1967, 1998 and 2001, have ended in 1-1 draws.

Newcastle's win here last season was only their third in our previous 46 league matches at Stamford Bridge in 58 years.

That also ended our six-year unbeaten Premier League run against the Magpies as well as a spell of 18 league games unbeaten at Stamford Bridge in 26 years.

Our last 10 league meetings at Stamford Bridge
2001/02 - Drew 1-1
2002/03 - Chelsea won 3-0
2003/04 - Chelsea won 5-0
2004/05 - Chelsea won 4-0
2005/06 - Chelsea won 3-0
2006/07 - Chelsea won 1-0
2007/08 - Chelsea won 2-1
2008/09 - Drew 0-0
2010/11 - Drew 2-2
2011/12 - Newcastle won 2-0

 

 

Other match last season
3 December 2011 Premier League
Newcastle.…..….…0 Chelsea……..…..……3
                                       Drogba 37, Kalou 88
                                       Sturridge 90+2
                      Att: 52,305

Chelsea v Newcastle in all competitions
Games played 151
Chelsea wins 63
Newcastle wins 49
Draws 39

Head to head in the League at Stamford Bridge
Games played 67
Chelsea wins 37
Newcastle wins 11
Draws 19

Biggest league win at Stamford Bridge for each team
25/10/1980 - Chelsea 6-0 Newcastle
12/09/1914 - Chelsea 0-3 Newcastle

DAYS SINCE
Chelsea won the league: 839
Newcastle won the league: 31,157
Arsenal won a trophy: 2,650
Liverpool won the league: 8,148

Visit tomorrow (Saturday) for the second part of the Pre-Match Briefing.