Magpies run riot, Hammers happy – 5 things we learned from Premier League action

Newcastle strengthened their top-four bid as they hit rivals Tottenham for six, while leaders Arsenal ended up drawing for a third successive match.

West Ham’s good week continued with a thumping win at Bournemouth, Leicester moved out of the relegation zone with their first victory under Dean Smith, and Everton slipped into the bottom three.

Here, Football Mad looks at five things we learned from the Premier League action across Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

Top four tied up?

Things are starting to look clearer in terms of the battle for Champions League qualification following a remarkable match at St James’ Park on Sunday that saw Newcastle fire five goals past Tottenham in the opening 21 minutes en route to a 6-1 rout.

It took Eddie Howe’s Magpies above Manchester United on goal difference into third place, with those sides six points clear of fifth-placed Spurs with one and two games in hand over them respectively.

Eight days on from the 3-2 home loss to Bournemouth, it was another grim afternoon for Tottenham’s acting head coach Cristian Stellini.

A point for Arsenal again

Arsenal certainly look set for a top-four finish, but their chances of ending top of the pile appear in real jeopardy now after they once again took a point rather than three, this time at home against bottom side Southampton.

After being held 2-2 by Liverpool and West Ham, having had two-goal leads on each occasion, Mikel Arteta’s men on Friday came back from 3-1 down against the Saints to draw 3-3.

It leaves the Gunners five points clear of Manchester City – who are on a six-match winning streak in the league – having played two games more, ahead of Wednesday’s crunch clash between the sides at the Etihad Stadium.

Happier Hammers

West Ham boss David Moyes looked under considerable pressure earlier this month when a 5-1 home loss to Newcastle left his side above the relegation zone on goal difference.

But it has been a good period since then, winning 1-0 at Fulham, drawing with Arsenal, advancing into the Europa Conference League semi-finals with a 4-1 win over Gent on Thursday – and the Hammers made it eight goals in two matches on Sunday as they triumphed 4-0 at Bournemouth, going six points clear of the bottom three.

Foxes fighting

It was also a positive weekend for Leicester’s survival bid, the Foxes claiming their first points since replacing boss Brendan Rodgers with Smith by beating Wolves 2-1 on Saturday in their maiden home game under him.

Battling back to secure the victory after going a goal down early on, Leicester ended a nine-game winless run – which had featured eight losses – and moved out of the drop zone on goal difference.

Everton’s winless stretch continues

Slipping into the bottom three as Leicester rose out of it was Sean Dyche’s Everton, who had Mason Holgate sent off as they drew 0-0 at Crystal Palace.

While it was not the worst result, the Toffees look very much in need of a victory, having now gone five games without one.