PL hits and misses: Newcastle edge clear; Leeds' reasons to believe

Howe working his magic on Tyneside

"Surely Newcastle are safe now," said Jeff Stelling on Soccer Saturday after Eddie Howe's side earned a hard-fought 2-1 win over Brighton.

It is hard to disagree. No side is on a longer current unbeaten run in the Premier League than Newcastle, who are now without defeat in eight games and have opened up a seven-point lead on 18th-placed Burnley.

"I still think we're in a relegation battle and it's very important the players feel that because we can't let up, we can't stop. It's lifted us in terms of the points, but we haven't achieved anything," Howe said afterwards. Deep down, he will surely be confident of guiding his team to safety.

On January 15, Newcastle were 19th on 12 points. They are now 14th on 28 and behind only Liverpool in the Premier League form table. St James' Park is beginning to feel like a fortress.

Some shrewd January signings, coupled with a real work ethic under the former Bournemouth boss, has the club dreaming again.

Newcastle's new owners will hope this brilliant run of form is just the start of an upward trajectory.Dan Sansom

Liverpool have played much better than they did in their 1-0 win over West Ham, including in games they have failed to win.

On paper, it was an underwhelming performance and afternoon for the Reds, but Jurgen Klopp didn't label it that way. He called it a "special win" and when you think about it, he's got a point.

The question levelled at any team hoping to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title is a simple one - could they, as City could, win the 10, 12, maybe 15 games in a row necessary to topple Pep Guardiola's side off their perch?

The fact Liverpool got the job done, in spite of their performance rather than because