THE CHAMPIONSHIP beckons as Burnley’s miracle escape came crashing down.
One defeat in eight had the Clarets eyeing one of the great survival acts and within touching distance of safety before Newcastle ruthlessly exposed Vincent Kompany’s side to leave them on the brink.
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With Nottingham Forest getting the job done at Sheffield United, Burnley are now cut adrift by five points and must beat Tottenham and Forest to stand any chance.
Turf Moor was awash with hope at kick-off, yet you’ll struggle to find a fan who reckons they can pull it off now.
The ground was half-empty with 10 minutes remaining, leaving the stage for the well-oiled Geordies to sing “Europe again, ole ole” on repeat.
Just their fifth win on their travels all campaign, Eddie Howe’s Mags leapfrogged Manchester United into sixth as the race for sixth hots up.
They started terribly but quickly recovered to win at a canter, with Callum Wilson, Sean Longstaff, Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak on the scoresheet.
A brilliant 20-minute spell in the first-half had the game done and dusted by the break as confidence rapidly drained from sinking Burnley.
Before this humdinger, Kompany ordered “no fear, we go all out, no regrets”. And his lads followed that to the letter early on as they bullied the Mags.
So poor on the road all season, the Geordies were on the ropes and clinging on as the desperate Clarets poured forward.
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But a big Martin Dubravka save to deny Jacob Bruun Larsen, a brilliant Dan Burn block and a penalty appeal waved away saw them hold on before striking against the run of play 19 minutes in.
Tino Livramento started it with a marauding run down the middle before playing right to Jacob Murphy.
The winger picked out Alexander Isak, whose effort was parried by Arijanet Muric, but only to Wilson for the striker to bundle home.
Up to 47 Prem goals in black and white, Wilson moved beyond Peter Beardsley and second only to Alan Shearer.
And as hope evaporated from Turf Moor, Newcastle ran riot to lead 3-0 at the break.
Both were great moves, with Longstaff bagging the second after 35 minutes.
Lewis Hall was the architect with a crucial interception and run upfield.
Switched to Wilson on the right, Murphy took over and pulled it back for the unchecked Longstaff to slide into the bottom corner.
Toon were purring now, and five minutes later Bruno wrapped the points up to leave Burnley staring down the barrel.
In front of England boss Gareth Southgate, Anthony Gordon bagged his 10th assist of the campaign – second in the Prem only to Ollie Watkins – when teeing up the Brazilian at the top of the box for his second in successive games.
Crestfallen Kompany walked out of the tunnel after the break with a face like thunder, and his mood was hardly helped when Lyle Foster blazed over at the start of the second half.
Their final chance to get back into it, it was 4-0 soon after – but only after Isak butchered a penalty.
Hunting down the Golden Boot, his effort was tame after Josh Brownhill hauled Gordon down.
But you can’t keep a good striker down for long and the Swede responded moments later in front of the jubilant away fans after being assisted by Murphy.
It’s now 10 goals in his last eight for the red-hot striker, taking him to 20 for the Prem season – the first Newcastle player to do so since Shearer in 2004.
As the heavens opened, hordes of downbeat Burnley fans made for the exit as Bruno nearly made it five with a curler before Dara O’Shea nodded home a consolation for the battered and bruised hosts.
And unless they beat Spurs next weekend, that final day showdown against Forest will have nothing riding on it for the Lancastrians.
