Eddie Howe's men had lost each of their past four league matches and started poorly, nearly conceding inside two minutes, as Karou Mitoma played in Jack Hinshelwood, but he was denied by Nick Pope.

Brighton continued to dominate in the early stages, with Carlos Baleba afforded too much time outside the area, with his shot from distance striking the crossbar.

Nevertheless, the home side took the lead against the run of play in the 12th minute as a costly slip from goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen on the right wing conceded possession to Jacob Murphy, whose cross was headed into an empty net by William Osula.

Newcastle doubled its lead from a corner in the 24th minute, as Bruno Guimaraes's whipped delivery found Dan Burn, who glanced in after peeling away from his defender.

Brighton went close again as a poor clearance from Pope struck Hinshelwood and rebounded against the post, while Verbruggen somewhat made amends with a vital save to deny Malick Thiaw from close range, as Newcastle hunted a third before half-time.

The dangerous Hinshelwood went close yet again with a header from a corner after the break, and he then halved the deficit in the 61st minute as he collected a threaded pass from Danny Welbeck and emphatically rifled his shot into the roof of the net.

Newcastle ceded possession for the latter part of the match, which invited pressure from Brighton, with Pope called upon to keep out an overhead kick by Charalampos Kostoulas, while Yankuba Minteh spurned a golden opportunity with just two minutes of normal time remaining as he skied a shot over from yards out.

The visitors flooded bodies forward in the final minutes, leaving space in behind for Newcastle, with Harvey Barnes making sure of the victory in the 95th minute as he thumped his chance home.

Newcastle is now back up to 13th on the table and only six points behind sixth-placed Brentford with three games left to play, and Bruno Guimaraes, who was making his 150th Premier League appearance, said the squad is still harbouring hopes of finishing the season on a high.

"It felt very good in the changing room before the game. We knew [this game] was important for us, chasing European football for next season," he said. "The points are crucial; we keep dreaming and believing.

"It was a tough game; Brighton are a good team. For everything we have done, we deserve the win.

"They had a lot of chances. In the first half, we were better, but second half, they were better. I am glad we could keep three points.

"We are looking up, not down. We can still play European football next season; we must win the next three games."

As for Brighton, its own European hopes took a blow as it slipped to seventh on the table, with Brentford leapfrogging it after a 3-0 win over West Ham United.

"We dominated the game, except a short period where we conceded two goals and lost a bit of structure," Seagulls boss Fabian Hurzeler said.

"But the key moments, we were not able to get on our side or manage well, and that's why we lost the game.

"Every time you concede a goal, you can do something better. We knew they'd have a lot of physicality and height, especially at set-pieces.

"The first goal was an unlucky decision [by Verbruggen]. I like players that make decisions; they have a lot of courage. You make mistakes; afterwards, everyone knows better, which is why I prefer players who take responsibility.

"This game didn't go our way, but the only thing we can do is analyse it and bounce back next weekend."