Tottenham let their grip on fourth place go as they passed up the chance to move clear of Aston Villa in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon. Not only did Ange Postecoglou's side fail to put their Champions League-seeking rivals under pressure ahead of their visit to Arsenal, the goal difference advantage was also wiped out.
Spurs suffered yet another damaging first half at St James' Park in which serious questions will once more be asked. The head coach was unable to rouse a reaction from his side after the break either with Eddie Howe's side once more running riot.
Postecoglou had admitted beforehand that he hadn't watched the game back but he need not have bothered. The heavy defeat in the northeast made it a shocking 10-1 joint scoreline in the last two visits.
Luckily for Spurs, there are still six games to go, but the manner of the loss against Newcastle raised a very slight chance of Manchester United gatecrashing the top five. Add in defeats for both Liverpool and West Ham in Europe in midweek and the fifth space heading into the Champions League is far from certain too.
Here, football.london analyses the upcoming games for each of the Champions League-chasers.
The best chance to hit back and respond or the worst-case scenario? The North London Derby is always firey but this one has enormous repercussions for the top of the table.
Tottenham player ratings vs Newcastle — Son and Bissouma struggle with Porro poor before injury
Ange Postecoglou hints at exciting Tottenham future and why Werner swore when he saw Van de Ven
Arsenal can scant afford to drop any points in the race for the title and if fifth place is to be lost for Champions League qualification then Spurs have little leeway themselves. It's all set up
Read on football.london