Newcastle 2-2 Chelsea: Nick Woltemade double not enough to earn Magpies victory as Blues fight back amid VAR controversy
Report as Newcastle and Chelsea draw 2-2 at St James' Park; Nick Woltemade's first-half double had given hosts a 2-0 half-time lead; Blues hit back through Reece James' free kick and Joao Pedro goal after a Robert Sanchez assist; Magpies controversially not given "clear" penalty
Saturday 20 December 2025 17:25, UK
Chelsea's spirited second-half display saw them recover from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw at Newcastle.
But Newcastle will rue a contentious decision by the Video Assistant Referee Peter Bankes not to award them a penalty after 55 minutes when leading 2-1, with Trevoh Chalobah barging Anthony Gordon to the floor.
"It was a clear penalty," said Newcastle boss Eddie Howe. But VAR agreed with the decision not to punish the Chelsea defender, who was deemed to be "shielding".
Chelsea arrived at St James' Park with all eyes on head coach Enzo Maresca after a week in which he failed to explain his "worst 48 hours at the club" comment last weekend, and was linked with a move to Manchester City. But the way the visitors fought back on Saturday lunchtime showed his players were still fighting for him.
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Newcastle, though, will be disappointed that Nick Woltemade's first-half double - the first time the German has scored twice in a game for the Magpies - was not enough to earn them a much-needed win after last weekend's loss at arch-rivals Sunderland.
The striker was in the right place to fire the hosts ahead after just four minutes following excellent approach play from Jacob Murphy - and a mistake from Wesley Fofana - before doubling their lead on 20 minutes.
This time it was Gordon with the impressive work down the left and from his inviting cross, Woltemade guided the ball just inside the far post, with the goal finally confirmed after a long VAR check with the semi-automated offside technology not working.
Chelsea's stirring fightback
Newcastle failed to have an effort on target after the 28th minute, although it still needed a moment of brilliance from Reece James to give the Blues a lifeline.
Standing over a 30-yard free kick, the Chelsea skipper curled his effort over the wall and in off the inside of the post with Aaron Ramsdale, at full stretch, helpless. From then on, the momentum changed.
The hosts will point to the decision not to award them a spot kick after Chalobah wiped out Gordon in the box, an incident former Premier League referee Mike Dean called "100 per cent a penalty" on Soccer Saturday.
However, Chelsea deservedly drew level midway through the second half thanks to an unlikely assist from Robert Sanchez, whose long clearance found Joao Pedro, who brilliantly turned his marker Malick Thiaw - who slipped to the floor - before bursting clear and sliding a shot under Ramsdale.
Chelsea remain in fourth, while Eddie Howe's team move up to 11th ahead of the rest of the weekend's games.
What the managers said...
Newcastle boss Eddie Howe on the decision not to penalise Chalobah's tackle on Gordon:
"Yeah, I thought the Anthony Gordon one was the standout one for me. I think anywhere else on the pitch, that's a blatant free-kick.
"When it went to VAR and of course they check everything, I thought this was going to be overturned. It's a clear error, because that's a clear penalty, as I've seen. I think the defender only focuses on Ant.
"They've said it is shielding, but I don't agree with that analysis, so I'm really disappointed that wasn't given.
"Just this one decision I think was wrong. I think that's where VAR really should intervene. Yeah, it's a difficult one to work out. Seeing it live, I thought it was clear."
Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca:
"I think after the first half, they deserved to win the game for sure. From my point of view, after the second half, we deserved to win the game. So this is my point of view.
"I think after the second goal we scored, we had three or four clear chances to score one more. They also had one with [Harvey] Barnes, that is the only one that I remember as a real chance. But overall, I think the draw is correct."
