Magpies soar back above Seagulls

A Yoann Gouffran strike and an Henri Lansbury own goal propelled Newcastle back to the top of the Championship and a step closer to an immediate return to the Premier League in a 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Monday.

Rafa Benitez’s side is embroiled with Brighton in a thrilling battle for second-tier supremacy, and victory over Villa, which went down with Newcastle last term, saw the Magpies move a point ahead of the Seagulls.

The loss left Villa dangerously close to the relegation places, only six points above the bottom three.

The predicament will worry Villa’s Chinese owner Tony Xia, whose bid to revitalize the Birmingham club’s fortunes by replacing Roberto di Matteo with new manager Steve Bruce has so far failed miserably.

Bruce’s former stint at Villa’s bitter rivals Birmingham City has made his job even tougher.