Soccer-Vibrant Villa crush Newcastle to close in on top five

Soccer Football - Premier League - Aston Villa v Newcastle United - Villa Park, Birmingham, Britain - April 19, 2025 Newcastle United's Joelinton in action with Aston Villa's John McGinn Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NO USE WITH UNAUTHORIZED AUDIO, VIDEO, DATA, FIXTURE LISTS, CLUB/LEAGUE LOGOS OR 'LIVE' SERVICES. ONLINE IN-MATCH USE LIMITED TO 120 IMAGES, NO VIDEO EMULATION. NO USE IN BETTING, GAMES OR SINGLE CLUB/LEAGUE/PLAYER PUBLICATIONS. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR ACCOUNT REPRESENTATIVE FOR FURTHER DETAILS..

BIRMINGHAM, England (Reuters) -Aston Villa thumped top-five rivals Newcastle United 4-1 at Villa Park to keep themselves in the thick of the race for Champions League qualification on Saturday.

Five days after being knocked out of Europe's top club competition by Paris St Germain in a thriller, Villa returned to Premier League action in emphatic fashion with the recalled Ollie Watkins opening the scoring inside the first minute.