Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has praised a couple of Chelsea players following his side’s victory over the Blues on Sunday.
Newcastle beat Chelsea 2-0 to climb to third in the Premier League table and handed their opponents a blow in the race for Champions League qualification.
They were helped by Nicolas Jackson’s dismissal in the first half, which left Enzo Maresca fuming.
Maresca failed to even acknowledge Jackson as he made his way to the dressing room following his sending off.
Eddie Howe impressed with Moises Caicedo and Reece James
Jackson is not going to win any plaudits after his red card, but Howe has had some praise for Moises Caicedo.
Caicedo has started at right-back recently, and that was the case at St James’ Park over the weekend. For Howe, the 23-year-old played well there, while the Newcastle boss was also impressed with the impact that Reece James was able to make when he came on.
“You can see the quality and level of their players,” Howe was quoted as saying by West London Sport after the game. “Moises Caicedo was magnificent at right-back and when he moved into midfield, and Reece James made a difference when he came on; he’s a quality player.”
Chelsea players and supporters have also recognised Caicedo’s influence this term, with the Ecuadorian winning both the club’s Players’ Player of the Season and Player of the Season awards.
Caicedo actually voted for Jackson to win the former, which may surprise some. The striker will finish the Premier League campaign with just 10 goals and only managed to end a long goal drought last month.
What former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin said about Moises Caicedo’s performance
Not everyone thought Caicedo excelled at St James’ Park. Ex-Chelsea wide man Pat Nevin actually thought that he struggled in the right-back position.
Nevin discussed Caicedo’s role during the game while on commentary and said: “Last week I was surprised that Caicedo didn’t get sent off with the challenges he was putting in. So what do Newcastle do? First minute they put the ball in behind him to Anthony Gordon and that eventually led to the goal.
“When he is back there he just seems rash and out of position. He is Chelsea’s player of the year this season but he is out of position and Anthony Gordon is already giving him a tough time.”
At some stage, you would expect the Ecuador international to return to the engine room. He is one of the best midfielders in the country and is being both limited and exposed in the right-back position.
It was a ball over his head in the first half that allowed Newcastle to get their players into a dangerous area of the pitch before their first goal.
