Premiership
Old Trafford
Saturday, 12 January; KO: 17:15 BST

...:::-----------------------------------------------------:::...

Premiership Table:


...:::-----------------------------------------------------:::...


Sir Alex Ferguson will pit his managerial wits against an unexpected foe this weekend, with


Nigel Pearson
taking temporary charge of Newcastle after the departure of Sam Allardyce.


's

Owen Hargreaves
is doubtful after picking up a rib injury in training, but a final decision will be taken as late as possible.

Gary Neville will not be considered to replace the suspended Wes Brown, despite his comeback for the reserves.




may play Obafemi Martins if he is allowed to return from Nigeria's training camp.

Stephen Carr could figure, but Habib Beye, Abdoulaye Faye and Geremi are away on international duty.




from:

Van der Sar, Kuszczak
O'Shea, Simpson, Ferdinand, Pique, Vidic, Evra
Fletcher, Nani, Park, Ronaldo, Anderson, Carrick, Hargreaves, Giggs
Rooney, Saha, Tevez



from:

Given, Harper, Carr, N'Zogbia, Enrique, Rozehnal, Cacapa, Taylor, Edgar, Butt, Milner, Emre, Duff, LuaLua, Smith, Viduka, Owen, Martins, Carroll


...:::-----------------------------------------------------:::...


Quote:

Originally Posted by Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson: "Our form has been decent and after the Christmas period, I felt we were starting to look strong again in the last 20 minutes at Aston Villa. "Our record against Newcastle is outstanding but I can't carry that into the game. "We have to produce the same performance level as we have done in the past and the same energy and hopefully get the job done."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Newcastle captain Alan Smith: "It's a difficult time for us, but we have to keep believing. "Consistency has been the most difficult thing for us this season. "But we have to stick together and be confident and brave and put on a performance like we did at Chelsea."

...:::-----------------------------------------------------:::...



Form guide:



are without a win in five matches, with defeats against Wigan, Chelsea and Manchester City flanked by draws with Derby County and Stoke City.



on the other hand, have five wins in their last six matches including last



Saturday's 2-0 FA Cup win at Aston Villa



Ins and outs:



Wayne Rooney

should start his first match since Boxing Day after a match-winning cameo at Villa Park, while strike partner Carlos Tevez could return
after suffering a bruised ankle against Birmingham.

Wes Brown is suspended for United, while Newcastle will be without Peter Ramage through injury.

Also missing for the Magpies are Geremi, Habib Beye, Abdoulaye Faye and possibly Obafemi Martins, at the African Cup of Nations.



Star men:



Michael Owen

is feeling his way back to match fitness, but the former Liverpool and Real Madrid striker remains a potent goal threat at all times.

Newcastle will be apprehensive about facing a fit-again


Wayne Rooney,

who has scored six goals in as many league appearances against the Magpies


...:::-----------------------------------------------------:::...


BIG-MATCH FACTS



are looking to hold onto the coattails or even overhaul Arsenal at the top,
by gaining an 11th straight home league victory, at the expense of Newcastle.

Held to a goalless draw by Stoke in the FA Cup, managerless Newcastle are in grave danger of tumbling to a fourth successive Premier League defeat,
which would be their worst run since April 2005.

No club has beaten Newcastle more often in the Premier League than Manchester United (16 times).

The Magpies have never won at Old Trafford in the Premier League era, and have not taken away maximum points from the Theatre of Dreams for 36 years.

If they fail again, it will be 25 matches without a maximum - no other club has visited United on more successive occasions without winning.

CLUB FORM:

Club stats
Fixtures


Highest realistically achievable after Saturday's matches: 11th
Lowest could fall: 12th

KEY PLAYER NOTES






Cristiano RONALDO
is Manchester United's top scorer with 19 goals.

RONALDO is also their leading Premier League marksman with 13, and leads the race for the Barclays Golden Boot.

RONALDO is the only United scorer in double figures.
He is also a double shy of 50 Premier League goals - all for Manchester United.

Wayne ROONEY has scored seven Premier League goals in eight starts against Newcastle;
one in two for Everton, and six in six for United.

If selected:-

Michael CARRICK and Ji-Sung PARK will be making their 50th Premier League appearances for Manchester United.

Louis SAHA will be facing the club he was once on loan to.
The 29 year old France international made 12 appearances (11 in the league) and scored two goals (one league) for Newcastle
when loaned from FC Metz for four months from January 1999.

If on the field from the outset:-

Chris EAGLES will be making his 50th club league start (Manchester United, Watford and Sheffield Wednesday).

Long term injury, Gary NEVILLE will be making his 350th Premier League start for Manchester United.

Suspended:-

Wes BROWN (one match)







Obafemi MARTINS
is Newcastle's top scorer with seven goals.

MARTINS is also the club's top marksmen in the Premier League with six.

If selected:-

Stephen CARR will be making his 300th career league appearance (Tottenham and Newcastle).

Steve HARPER will be making his 100th career league appearance (Newcastle, Bradford, Stockport, Hartlepool and Huddersfield).

Nicky BUTT will be facing a former club.
The 32 year old England international midfielder made 387 appearances (270 in the league) and scored 26 goals (21 league)
for Manchester United between January 1993 and his £2.5m move to St James' Park in July 2004.

Alan SMITH will be facing former colleagues.
The 27 year old England international forward made 93 appearances (61 in the league) and scored 12 goals (seven league)
for the Red Devils between May 2004 and his move to Newcastle in August 2007.

HEAD TO HEAD

scorers:



Solskjaer

41






Solskjaer