Newcastle United manager Eddie Howe has insisted that you can "never underestimate the qualities" of Manchester United and is preparing his side for a challenging Premier League contest at St James' Park on Saturday.
Both teams enter this fixture somewhat deflated after they were both forced to settle for score draws in their penultimate group-stage games in the Champions League in midweek, with their hopes of qualifying for the last 16 hanging in the balance.
Newcastle were on course to claim all three points against Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday, but a controversial penalty kick was awarded in the dying embers which Kylian Mbappe converted to salvage a 1-1 draw at the Parc des Princes.
Man United, meanwhile, let a two-goal lead slip to draw 3-3 with Galatasaray in Turkey on Wednesday, and their fate is now out of their hands as they sit rock bottom of Group A with only one game remaining against Bayern Munich.
Erik ten Hag's side have endured a turbulent 2023-24 campaign and have already lost nine games across all competitions, including a disappointing 3-0 home defeat to Newcastle in the EFL Cup fourth round.
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Nevertheless, the Red Devils currently sit sixth in the Premier League table and one point clear of Saturday's opponents Newcastle in seventh, while there are only four points separating Ten Hag's men from Aston Villa in fourth.
Howe has praised Ten Hag and believes that Man United, who have won each of their last four Premier League away games, have a number of "outstanding individuals" who can cause Newcastle problems on Saturday.
Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Howe said: "You can never underestimate the qualities of Manchester United. They are a very good team and have got outstanding individuals.
"They have a very good head coach who is leading them so, first and foremost, we have total respect to our opposition. They have won a lot of games recently and are performing well; they have quality players.
"For us, following on from the Chelsea game, we need to try and keep that momentum and energy from our recent performances, I think it will be a really good game."
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Howe has insisted that his Newcastle side must quickly brush aside the disappointment of Tuesday's draw with PSG and "look forward" to Saturday's clash with Man United.
"Mentally, there was a reflection afterwards and a lot of disappointment in the dressing room," said the Magpies boss. "Collectively, we felt we were minutes away from a historic result for us in our season and what happened, happened.
"When a new day comes and you look at it differently, you have to move forward and look forward to the next game.
"This season, especially, whether the results are positive or negative, we can't take them with us even for a couple of days because then that influences what happens in the future and the future's always the most important thing.
"When something like that happens, you allow the players to be emotional but I don't think we want to view ourselves as victims or any kind of negative association like that. It's happened, put it in the back of our heads, and use it as motivation."
Meanwhile, Howe has confirmed that no fresh faces will return from injury in time for this weekend's game, but he hopes that "it won't be too long" before the likes of Sean Longstaff (ankle) and Joe Willock (Achilles) can be reintegrated into the squad.
Oliver Thomas
