Dan Burn urges Newcastle to keep pushing after hitting 40-point mark

Dan Burn has insisted Newcastle United are in no mood to stop now after dragging themselves out of Premier League relegation trouble and to within touching distance of the top 10.

The Magpies have banked 40 points to ease themselves to the brink of safety

The Magpies climbed 15 points clear of the drop zone as a result of Wednesday night’s 1-0 victory over Crystal Palace at St James’ Park, their sixth on the trot on Tyneside, something they had not achieved in the top flight since 2004 during Sir Bobby Robson’s reign.

It left them in 11th place, level on 40 points with Brighton in 10th with five games to go, but with safety not yet mathematically assured and top two Manchester City and Liverpool among their remaining opponents, they want to keep the ball rolling.

Defender Burn said: “Well 40 is the magic number, but until it’s done, we will just keep going. We don’t want to stop here, we want to go as high as we can. I think it’s some achievement from where we were when the ownership came in to where we are now.”

Burn was still wearing the colours of Brighton when Newcastle’s new owners completed their takeover in October last year, and the club he was to join in January were five points adrift of safety when they appointed Eddie Howe as head coach during the following month.

Chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan was at St James’ on Wednesday for the first time since January 8, when he saw the Magpies lose 1-0 to League One Cambridge in the FA Cup as the turn-around they craved proved elusive.

But during the intervening period, they have won nine of the 14 league games they have played and lost just three.

Their latest success came courtesy of Miguel Almiron’s fine 32nd-minute strike and a concerted second-half rearguard action