Steve Bruce has warned his Newcastle United players they still aren't safe from the drop - despite the resounding win over Sheffield United.
The Toon boss made it four clean sheets in a row at home and this victory ensured Bruce could enjoy back to back victories in the Premier League.
But despite being 11 points clear of the drop zone, Bruce asked for caution in the aftermath of the game.
He said: "We can't take anything for granted because you never know.
"The points return with eight games to go.
"I can't be more pleased.
"If somebody said with eight games to go that we're two points behind Arsenal, I wouldn't quite believe it."
Bruce now takes his side into a clash against his old club Aston Villa, where a win will take him beyond the 40-point mark.
The former Man United skipper said: "It is, so today I based the team on how physically we had looked over the last two or three weeks, and of course the one thing you are going to have to do, all of us, is make a few changes.
"Whether it's this Wednesday or for next Sunday or the following Wednesday, to play the amount of games we're playing in a month, we're going to have to rotate a little bit."
But while Bruce has one eye on getting to the 40 point mark he knows that there could be bigger prizes on offer than just survival.
He said: "The result gives me that option.
"As I said on Friday, let's try to chase down Burnley if we can.
"We want to try to finish as strongly as we possibly can.
"We've given ourselves a wonderful platform.
"If somebody had said with eight games to go we'd be two points behind Arsenal, I would have been saying, 'That's not quite achievable'.
"There's a bit to do still, but we're going in the right direction.
"Always when the new project starts to get off with a win is always vital."
