Chelsea recovered from two goals down to salvage a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw with Newcastle United at St James' Park.
Having scored an own goal to hand Sunderland victory in the first Premier League Tyne-Wear derby since 2016 last weekend, Nick Woltemade made amends with two goals in the first 20 minutes.
Anthony Gordon played a prominent role in both, seeing a back-post volley parried by Robert Sanchez in the build-up to the first, then supplying an inch-perfect cross to assist the second.
But Chelsea got back into the game through Reece James' brilliant free-kick, before Joao Pedro took advantage of a slip from Malick Thiaw to equalise in the 66th minute.
Harvey Barnes missed the best chance to win it for Newcastle in an action-packed second half, as the home side climb one place in the table to 11th on 23 points, with Chelsea six points better off in fourth.
How the match unfolded
Newcastle hit the front in the fourth minute when, having stolen possession from Wesley Fofana to start the attack, Gordon outmuscled Malo Gusto and saw a volley smothered by Sanchez before Woltemade fired in the rebound.
And, after seeing a fierce shot tipped over by Sanchez, Gordon was also the architect of Newcastle's second goal, teasing in a wonderful cross that Woltemade, narrowly onside, flicked into the bottom-right corner.
Pedro Neto saw a goal disallowed for handball before Woltemade failed to clinch a first-half hat-trick from another glorious Gordon cross, volleying wide from close range.
Aaron Ramsdale was given no chance by James' curling free-kick four minutes into the second half, but the Newcastle goalkeeper had to be on his toes to deny Pedro Neto soon afterwards.
And Newcastle's lead was swiped from them when Thiaw was caught beneath a bouncing ball, and Joao Pedro raced through to slot beneath Ramsdale.
The momentum then swung back Newcastle's way, and they should have snatched victory when Barnes steered Bruno Guimaraes' pinpoint cross off target. Anthony Elanga also shot wide on the counter-attack.
Gordon sets the tone, but Newcastle can't hold on
Wednesday's EFL Cup quarter-final win over Fulham boosted spirits on Tyneside after Eddie Howe had criticised his players' mentality after the Sunderland defeat, and a fast start to Sunday's game had Chelsea on the ropes.
While Woltemade got on the scoresheet twice, Gordon was responsible for getting the home fans out of their seats in the early stages with his all-action style.
Gordon chased after Fofana as the Chelsea centre-back stepped into midfield, and after his sliding challenge allowed Guimaraes to work the ball wide, the England winger broke into the box to provoke the opening goal.
He then provided two wonderful inswinging crosses after scampering down the left, with Woltemade prodding in the first and sending the second narrowly wide.
Lewis Miley, who was playing right-back, also sent a free header over the top, with Newcastle's two-goal lead at the interval not reflecting their dominance. But their defensive frailties re-emerged after half-time.
Howe said before kick-off that Newcastle needed to rediscover their defensive solidity, but with Dan Burn, Sven Botman, Kieran Trippier and Tino Livramento all absent, they wilted under Chelsea's pressure, with Thiaw's misjudgement proving particularly costly.
Newcastle had the best openings to score the game's fifth goal late on, but Howe's main concern will be their defensive shortcomings ahead of a Boxing Day trip to Manchester United.
Maresca's men avoid Blue Christmas
At Friday's pre-match press conference, Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca dismissed suggestions he could eventually succeed his former mentor Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
Those questions came one week after Maresca described the 48 hours that preceded a 2-0 victory over Everton as the worst of his Stamford Bridge reign. On Tyneside, he may have endured his worst 20 minutes in the Chelsea dugout.
Things could have been worse for the Blues, too, as Newcastle felt Alejandro Garnacho could have had a red card – rather than a yellow – for a rough tackle on Jacob Ramsey.
Woltemade also passed up a great chance to make it 3-0, and later, Trevoh Chalobah's challenge on Gordon inside the area was deemed a shielding action rather than a foul.
But Chelsea deserve credit for upping the tempo in the second half, with James' curling dead-ball goal providing the impetus they needed. Joao Pedro refused to give up on Sanchez’s long pass for his goal, while Neto and Garnacho both worked Ramsdale at his near post.
The Blues might count themselves fortunate to see Barnes and Elanga pass up late chances, while James also survived a VAR check for a possible red card in stoppage time.
But Maresca will see this result as a positive one, given Chelsea's half-time predicament, with a home game against Aston Villa up next on 27 December.
