Newcastle end Burnley's unbeaten run to move up to 13th

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Sean Longstaff in action with Burnley's Jeff Hendrick and Johann Berg Gudmundsson Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Feb 26 - NEWCASTLE UNITED 2 BURNLEY 0

A stunning strike from Fabian Schar and youngster Sean Longstaff's first goal for the club gave Newcastle United a comfortable 2-0 win over Burnley on Tuesday.

Newcastle's fourth straight home win moved Rafa Benitez's team up 13th place, above Burnley, whose eight game unbeaten run came to an end.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Martin Dubravka in action Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Swiss defender Schar smashed a fierce drive from 28 metres off the inside of the post and past a helpless Burnley keeper Tom Heaton to put the Magpies ahead in the 24th minute.

Home keeper Martin Dubravka then did well to keep out a volley from in-form Burnley striker Chris Wood after a rare spell of pressure from the visitors.

Newcastle, whose record signing Miguel Almiron impressed again, went 2-0 up when local-born midfielder Longstaff reacted well after Burnley failed to deal with Matt Ritchie's left-wing cross and drove low past Heaton.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Martin Dubravka celebrates after the match REUTERS/Scott Heppell

Burnley defender James Tarkowski missed a great chance from close range shortly before the break but Sean Dyche's side were well below-par and struggled to create chances in the second half.

It was a Newcastle performance, combining solid defensive organisation with just enough flair in attack, which showed exactly how they have been able to pull away from mid-season troubles at the bottom of the table.

"I am very proud. The players deserve a lot of credit, we knew it would be a tough game against a physical team," said Benitez.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez and Burnley manager Sean Dyche during the match Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

"We managed well in the first half and had control and then in the second half we had to defend crosses and long balls and we did it quite well.

"Still we could be better sometimes but overall it was a great performance and good team spirit. The fans appreciate that."

Dyche conceded his side may have suffered from their exertions in their 2-1 win over Tottenham on Saturday.

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Jamaal Lascelles in action with Burnley's Chris Wood Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

"It was a really poor first half, a long way short of where we have been. I don’t want to be too critical we just didn’t have the fight we have had recently. Credit to Newcastle they played well," he said.

(Reporting by Simon Evans, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley's James Tarkowski misses a chance to score Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley's James Tarkowski misses a chance to score Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley's Charlie Taylor in action with Newcastle United's Miguel Almiron Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley's Jack Cork in action with Newcastle United's Ayoze Perez Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Miguel Almiron in action with Burnley's Johann Berg Gudmundsson REUTERS/Scott Heppell

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Sean Longstaff celebrates scoring their second goal with Isaac Hayden REUTERS/Scott Heppell

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley's Jeff Hendrick in action with Newcastle United's Salomon Rondon Action Images via Reuters/Lee Smith

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Newcastle United's Miguel Almiron celebrates their first goal scored by Fabian Schar REUTERS/Scott Heppell

Soccer Football - Premier League - Newcastle United v Burnley - St James' Park, Newcastle, Britain - February 26, 2019 Burnley manager Sean Dyche and Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez during the match REUTERS/Scott Heppell