Okazaki upstages Benitez as Leicester maintains pace atop Premier League

Leicester - Shinji Okazaki's stunning goal upstaged new Newcastle United manager Rafael Benitez as Leicester City reasserted a five-point lead in the Premier League with a tight 1-0 victory on Monday.

Benitez was taking charge of Newcastle for the first time since being appointed as the successor to the sacked Steve McClaren on a three-year contract, but it was Okazaki, 29, who stole the headlines with an acrobatic 25th-minute overhead kick.

Related - PHOTO: Okazaki demonstrates perfect bicycle kick for goal vs. Newcastle

Okazaki's sixth goal of the season took Leicester five points clear of Tottenham, which had trimmed its lead to two points with victory at Aston Villa on Sunday, and nudged Claudio Ranieri's men a step closer to an extraordinary title triumph.

It was Newcastle's fourth consecutive defeat - a first this season - and saw Leicester complete a league double over the north-east giant for the first time since the 1974-75 campaign.

The visiting side showed more fight than in recent weeks at the King Power Stadium, but it remains in the relegation zone ahead of Benitez's St James' Park baptism of fire on Sunday against local rival and fellow struggler Sunderland.

The Spaniard made two changes to the team beaten 3-1 by Bournemouth in McClaren's final game, with Vurnon Anita and Aleksandar Mitrovic coming in, while Jack Colback moved from central midfield to left-back.

Another novelty saw Moussa Sissoko line up on the left flank, and the France international gave the host an early scare when he chased down Wes Morgan's back-pass and forced Kasper Schmeichel into a hurried clearance.

It set the tone for an assured start by Newcastle, for whom lone striker Mitrovic proved an effective battering ram.

Ayoze Perez and Colback each shot wide from decent positions, Sissoko headed the wrong side of the post from Daryl Janmaat's right-wing cross and Mitrovic played a cross-shot right across the face of goal.