Rafa Benitez's return ends up a misery as Chelsea beat former manager 3-1, match report
Chelsea have moved level on points with second-place Manchester United
Newcastle's high press yielded rewards as Marcos Alonso sold Courtois short with a back-pass, forcing the keeper to come off his line and get to the ball ahead of Jacob Murphy. However, his touch only took the ball to the feet of Gayle, who was left with a simple finish into the empty net. The goal only seemed to spark Chelsea into life.
The equaliser seemed inevitable, and sure enough it arrived just one minute after Chelsea had struck the woodwork when Florian Lejeune's clearance only fell as far as Hazard, who fired a volley into the ground and bouncing past a helpless Darlow.
There was no let-up from the hosts, though, and they had completed the comeback shortly after the half-hour mark when Morata converted a powerful Victor Moses cross from close range after both Lejeune and Chancel Mbemba had failed to intercept the ball.
Chelsea continued to dominate, though, and Hazard looked the most likely to give his side a cushion during another dazzling display from the Belgian. The Belgian's second goal eventually arrived from the penalty spot with a little over 15 minutes remaining, sending Darlow the wrong way with a cheeky Panenka dink.
In the end, Antonio Conte denied any further hat-trick chances by withdrawing Hazard with 12 minutes remaining, but that didn't stop Chelsea from pushing for a fourth and Alonso became the latest to test Darlow with a powerful strike from a tight angle.
Newcastle did threaten a late consolation when Ciaran Clark nodded over from a corner in the final minute, but the match was over as a contest by that stage as Rafael Benitez suffered defeat on his first return to Stamford Bridge since his time as Chelsea boss came to an end.
Source: Sports Mole