Aston Villa claimed a huge win in the race for UEFA Champions League qualification with a 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle United, pulling within two points of their opponents.

Ian Maatsen and Amadou Onana struck either side of a Dan Burn own goal in the second half at Villa Park, where Unai Emery's team thoroughly deserved their victory.

Ollie Watkins had scored Villa's opener in the first minute and could have had a perfect hat-trick before half-time, but he twice rattled the woodwork, with those chances coming either side of Fabian Schar’s equaliser.

Villa always carried the greater threat, though, and they pulled clear after Maatsen scored his first Premier League goal, climbing to sixth in the Premier League on 57 points.

They are only behind fifth-placed Nottingham Forest, who travel to Tottenham Hotspur on Monday night, on goal difference, while Newcastle – who were again led by Jason Tindall in Eddie Howe's absence – stay third with 59 points.

How the match unfolded

Just 33 seconds were on the clock when Villa went ahead, with Watkins' strike deflecting off Schar to wrong-foot Nick Pope after the hosts pressed high to recover possession.

Watkins almost had another in the fifth minute, but his effort cannoned back off the crossbar and Newcastle hit back in the 18th minute, Schar ghosting in to nod Harvey Barnes' cross home.

Marco Asensio scuffed his shot when presented with an immediate chance to restore Villa's lead, then Watkins again hit the woodwork, his bullet header bouncing off the left post.

Not deterred by those near-misses, Villa picked up where they left off in the second half and retook the lead when Watkins played in Maatsen for a powerful finish across goal in the 64th minute.

Villa had the third goal their pressure warranted nine minutes later, with Jacob Ramsey's low cross being deflected in by the unfortunate Burn.

But they were not done there. After Morgan Rogers was denied by Pope at close quarters, substitute Onana lashed a shot into the top-left corner to add further gloss to a statement victory.

Watkins back with a bang

The loan signing of Marcus Rashford has led to a reduction in playing time for Watkins, who declared after a 3-0 win at Southampton last week that he was not happy with playing a supporting role.

Watkins started on the bench in both legs of Villa's Champions League quarter-final against Paris Saint-Germain, but was restored to the line-up here and produced a talismanic performance.

He left the frame of Pope's goal shaking on two occasions in the first half – once with a rasping left-footed effort and again with a fine header from Asensio's free-kick.

His early strike drew him level with Gabriel Agbonlahor as Villa's joint-leading Premier League scorer, with 74 goals in the competition. But his game has always been about more than goals, and perhaps his most important contribution came when the contest was poised at 1-1.

Rogers' strong hold-up play and Asensio's slick ball out to the left had Watkins running at the Newcastle backline, and he timed his pass to perfection to tee up Maatsen.

Watkins has now both scored and assisted in eight separate Premier League matches since the start of last season, and with the England international at the top of his game and plenty of other options available, Villa will feel momentum is on their side in the European race as they look for an immediate return to the Champions League, after their midweek exit.

Having won five straight league games, they go to Manchester City for another significant contest on Tuesday.

Reality check for Newcastle

Newcastle have enjoyed facing Villa lately, winning three straight games against them by scorelines of 5-1, 3-1 and 3-0 coming into this one.

And a run of five straight Premier League wins, the last two overseen by Tindall as Howe recovers from pneumonia, had led many onlookers to install the Magpies as favourites for a top-five finish.

But perhaps the effort required in Wednesday's 5-0 rout of Crystal Palace told here, as they simply failed to deal with Villa's dynamism.

The visiting defence was nowhere to be seen when Watkins took Youri Tielemans' pass under his spell on the left side of the area early on, and Schar's weak attempt to block only sent the ball spinning in at the near post.

And while Schar redeemed himself to equalise with the aid of a magnificent cross from in-form winger Barnes, Newcastle buckled in the face of relentless Villa pressure after the break.

Villa's substitutes Onana, Rashford, Ramsey, Donyell Malen and Ross Barkley injected more running power and the game was up at 4-1, with Tindall replacing Alexander Isak and Barnes to rest them for upcoming assignments. They host struggling Ipswich Town next week.

Club reports

Villa report | Newcastle report

Match officials

Referee: Jarred Gillett. Assistants: Lee Betts, Sian Massey-Ellis. Fourth official: Farai Hallam. VAR: Michael Salisbury. Assistant VAR: Derek Eaton.