The Blues welcomed Newcastle United to Stamford Bridge on Saturday knowing a victory could take them to the summit of the Barclays Premier League if results went their way.

In typical Mourinho fashion, the Portuguese masterminded an impressive 1-0 victory Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium last Monday to send out a strong message to their title rivals. Even though Chelsea outclassed City on their own patch and took all three points home, Mourinho still believes his side are outsiders for the title.

However, speaking before the game Pardew trashed Mourinho’s tactics of downplaying his side’s title chances. According to the Daily Mail, the Newcastle manager believes that the Blues are realistic contenders for the title this season.

On being asked to comment on Mourinho’s stance that he won’t be able to overcome the current top two, he said, “I don’t believe that for one minute – and I think, deep down, nor does Jose.”

Chelsea failed to hit the target in their last home game as West Ham’s stubborn defence earned them a 0-0 draw. Pardew, however, was not expected to park the bus and so it proved as Newcastle tried to attack Chelsea but Eden Hazard’s hat-trick took the Blues to a comprehensive win. Pardew said in reference to Chelsea’s game vs the Hammers, “You have to defend well. They need to find a way, and nine times out of 10, they do. On that occasion, they didn’t.”

Newcastle were without Yoan Gouffran and Loic Remy, who both scored in the 2-0 reverse fixture at St James Park, while Samuel Eto’o lead the line for the Blues who recorded their 7th clean sheet in 8 games as Hazard’s class confirmed what Pardew had thought.