Man Utd’s Sir Alex Ferguson: We cannot afford to lose to Newcastle

Sir Alex Ferguson admits Manchester United cannot afford to lose to Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Sunday.

The Red Devils were left stunned after Tottenham Hotspur were 3-2 winners at Old Trafford last weekend, leaving United four points behind league leaders Chelsea.

Ferguson’s men will look to close the gap on the Blues this weekend, and the Red Devils manager is hoping his side can replicate their second-half display against Spurs.

“It’s always a difficult place to go,” Ferguson said. “They’ll be buoyed by their support. I think Alan Pardew has a really good team there. After the game against Tottenham we have to make sure we don’t lose.

“We played some really good football at times [against Tottenham] and it was interesting to play Rooney, Chicharito and Robin van Persie together. It gives me some thoughts and options for certain games.”

Ferguson is particularly wary of Newcastle’s attacking options, with Shola Ameobi and Papiss Cissé scoring in the Magpies’ 3-0 victory over Bordeaux in the Europa League on Thursday.

“I watched Newcastle last night and they played a few of their squad and left a few others out,” Ferguson added.

“But they still won convincingly. It was a good performance and a good result for them.

“Demba Ba and Papiss Cissé both have good scoring records. They rested Ba last night and played Shola Ameobi.

“I’m not sure what combination it will be on Sunday. Ba and Ameobi are both strong, while Cisse has scored some fantastic goals for them. The third goal last night was excellent.”

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