EPL: Werner ends goal drought as Chelsea beat Newcastle to go fourth

Werner came into this match having not scored since a 4-1 win against bottom side Sheffield United on 7 November.

He had chances within the opening half an hour with the best coming from Marcos Alonso’s header which Werner poked wide.

It threatened to be a similar story for Werner, who has been creative for Chelsea this season but has failed to deliver goals following a high-profile move from RB Leipzig in the summer.

But after taking a whack in the face from Newcastle defender Jamal Lewis and running off to receive treatment, Werner returned to the pitch to provide a cross that ultimately came to Giroud to coolly thump into the net, and the German added Chelsea’s second from a corner before half-time.

It was Werner’s first goal in exactly 1,000 minutes of Premier League action for Chelsea and ended a run of 31 attempts without scoring – he even had to wait for a video assistant referee decision before being allowed to celebrate properly, which he did with a relieved smile.

His performance capped off another positive result for Chelsea under new boss Thomas Tuchel, who handed a start to out-of-favour goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga and came through unscathed.

It was Arrizabalaga’s first league start since a 3-3 draw with Southampton on 17 October after losing his position under former manager Frank Lampard.

The Blues have now picked up 13 points from a possible 15 under the new leadership, winning four successive league matches in a row for the first time since November 2019.

Tuchel described it as “the perfect evening” but admitted Abraham’s injury was “serious enough he had to go out and we worry about him”.