Palmer stats for Chelsea in victory over Newcastle

Chelsea's impressive revival under Enzo Maresca gathered pace as Nicolas Jackson and Cole Palmer scored to earn a 2-1 victory over Newcastle at Stamford Bridge.

Palmer’s winner in the second half, driven in masterfully from the edge of the box, was his 19th goal in 15 home Premier League appearances and was worthy reward for a controlled, confident display from a side that continued to convince as top-four contenders.

Alexander Isak had earlier tapped in to level for Eddie Howe’s visitors after Jackson gave Chelsea the lead.

And the Sweden international spurned a golden chance to steal a point in the second half when, after rounding goalkeeper Robert Sanchez he seemingly failed to make a decision over whether to pass or shoot, squandering an open goal as Newcastle’s winless league run extended to five games.

The outstanding attacker on display though was Jackson who has grown to look increasingly like the striker Chelsea have been missing. He might have enjoyed a sublime assist after four minutes when an ingenuous spin and pass defeated Dan Burn and released Palmer, whose finish off the post was ruled out by VAR for a fractional offside.

But Jackson would get his moment and he handed Chelsea their breakthrough with his sixth goal of the season. Palmer collected it deep in his own half and bent a wonderful pass in behind Tino Livramento for Neto to chase. Fabian Schar went to ground to try and intercept, a gamble that played into Neto's hands as he spirited the ball away and crossed low for Jackson to sweep home.

Reece James was making his first Stamford Bridge appearance for almost a year with Maresca making the surprise decision to play him at left-back, and the captain’s concentration lapsed for Newcastle’s equaliser.

Bruno