Loic Remy's Late Goal Seals Newcastle Upset Over Chelsea

It seems like we've been here before, with a member of the Premier League's royalty losing unexpectedly to a team with nowhere near comparable talent. But that's the 2013 season for you, where Arsenal and Liverpool face off in a top-of-the-table clash while fighting off the likes of Tottenham, Southampton, and Everton.

In fact, Newcastle's win today was oddly convincing. Chelsea dominated the first half, but never came all that close to scoring. After halftime, however, the Magpies looked like the more dangerous team by far. Alan Pardew must have remembered that his team has a few talented midfielders of its own, and maybe he should abandon his long-ball-or-bust strategy and let those guys play a little bit.

Indeed, it was by running at the vulnerable Chelsea back line exposed by a midfield pushing for the win that Newcastle found its best chances. It was a little surprising when the breakthrough finally came from a set piece. Yohan Cabaye, the best of the aforementioned midfielders, curled in a perfect cross from a free kick that found the head of fellow Frenchie Yoan Gouffran, whose effort easily beat Petr Cech.

The second goal typified the numerous chances Newcastle created in the latter parts of the game. From a fast break, Anita found himself on the wing and played a couple of passes before skipping past an exhausted Ramires. Unmarked in the penalty box, he cut back a simple pass to Remy, who smashed the ball into the back of the net off the inside of the post.

So, the doom and gloom will return to what seemed like a Chelsea team rounding into form after a fairly shaky start to the season. But when you have a manager like Mourinho, who commands so much media attention, and an owner like Abramovich, who would fire his mother for making his oatmeal too hot, the questions that inevitably arise from a performance like this will always be louder than they are elsewhere.