Newcastle inflicted a sixth Premier League defeat of the season on Manchester United as Arsenal beat Wolves 2-1 on Saturday to extend their lead to four points.
Anthony Gordon scored the only goal at St James’ Park to lift Newcastle to fifth in the table and two points off the top four.
In contrast, United slip to seventh and are yet to beat any team in the Premier League’s top nine this season.
Eddie Howe’s men deserved to win by a greater margin despite missing 11 first-team players through injury or suspension and the late loss of goalkeeper Nick Pope due to injury. shoulder problem.
Kieran Trippier’s free-kick came back under the bar and Alexander Isak’s shot was deflected inches wide before the break.
Gordon finally made the breakthrough 10 minutes into the second half when he was picked out by Trippier to convert at the far post.
“I couldn’t be happier with the players tonight,” Howe said after his understrength side took seven points from three games in a week against Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and United.
“The performances we put in against three top teams were brilliant, it will give confidence, and when we get some players back we can go even further.”
Arsenal were made to survive a late scare despite a blistering start at the Emirates.
Goals from Bukayo Saka and Martin Odegaard put the Gunners 2-0 up inside 13 minutes.
But they failed to put the match to bed and sweated when Wolves striker Matheus Cunha found the top corner in the 86th minute to set up a tense finale.
Despite the instability, last year’s runners-up Arsenal held on to secure their 10th victory in 14 league matches, putting them four points clear of champions Manchester City, who host Tottenham on Sunday.
“I can only congratulate the players,” said Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.
“They were excellent. We played against a very good team, we generated a lot of things and conceded almost nothing. The score should have been very different. We were unlucky because we hit the pole three times, I think.
“In the end we made a mistake near the goal. In the Premier League you get punished heavily for that. Then it’s the game. Overall I’m really happy with our performance again.”
At the other end of the table, Burnley secured their first home win of the season in style as they beat Sheffield United 5-0.
Jay Rodriguez gave the home team the lead with just 15 seconds on the clock, the quickest goal of the season so far.
Jacob Bruun Larsen increased their lead and the Blades’ task was made almost impossible when Oli McBurnie received a second yellow card shortly before the break.
Zeki Amdouni, Luca Koleosho and Josh Brownhill all scored in the final 17 minutes as the floodgates opened.
Paul Heckingbottom’s men have now conceded five or more goals on three occasions this season and are falling to the bottom of the table.
Burnley move to within two points of safety after just their second win of the season – and Vincent Kompany said he hoped the three points would be a launching pad.
“I think the guys deserved it,” he told the BBC. “They performed well for a while. This league is brutal.”
Luton, just outside the drop zone, slumped to a 3-1 defeat at Brentford, with Neal Maupay, Ben Mee and Shandon Baptiste on target for the Bees.
Everton boosted their survival hopes despite a hefty 10-point deduction with a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest.
Dwight McNeil scored the only goal midway through the second half, sending the ball into the top corner, as Everton secured a third consecutive away victory.
“It’s a restart. It’s a step in the right direction, but there’s still a lot to do,” Everton manager Sean Dyche said.
