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Our worst start to a season this millennium continues as we welcome a Chelsea side also struggling to find form. Last December this fixture saw Mourinho’s then unbeaten Chelsea taste defeat for the first time that season, to a resurgent Newcastle that had just charged up the table following a November to remember. Today both sides are in poor form and far short of where they’d expect to be at this point in the season, although at least Chelsea have a couple of wins to their name.
It would be fitting for our first league win come against Mourinho, who has never won a match at St James’ Park, and his Chelsea team that have been defeated on their last three visits, but after our traditional cup capitulation on Tuesday, any expectations of a positive outcome are greatly diminished.
Tim Krul took the chance to address his team-mates on the club website following that travesty:
“Everybody has to look at themselves in the mirror and ask if they gave everything. If not, they have to start straight away, because what we are doing at the moment is really not good enough. A couple of players put in good performances but there were also some really bad ones.
“Everybody needs to grow now. We need to come out and show we are real men. Chelsea and Manchester City are two massive games and we have to show that we have got the fight for it.
“We have to try and turn it around on Saturday against Chelsea, with 50,000 Geordies being that extra man that we really need right now. Hopefully they will give us the confidence and lift we need. We need them behind us but we need to show them something, too, and give them something to shout about. It is a two-way street.
“Saturday is a new game and we have to show the fans fight and passion, and everybody needs to put in a proper performance.”
– Tim Krul