Newcastle v Man United

The result of this match may largely depend on how Manchester United respond to the disappointment of their FA Cup exit at the hands of arch-rivals City on Saturday. That blow will have been eased, to some extent, by the dramatic late Liverpool equaliser the following day that cost second placed Arsenal a crucial two points. The returns of Wayne Rooney following suspension, and Ryan Giggs, after an unexpected rest, provides further boosts.

Newcastle will have had nine days to look forward to one of their season’s highlights - hosting Manchester United. Their last result was a disappointing 1-0 loss at Villa, but Alan Pardew put this down to a weakened side. He is hopeful that Shola Ameobi will return on Tuesday, however, the absence of top scorer Kevin Nolan, who completes a two match suspension, looks pivotal. Throw in an injury to goalkeeper Steve Harper, that makes him a doubt, and things don’t look too rosy for the Toon Army.

Expect Newcastle to raise their game as they have done against several of the big boys already this season. A goal isn’t beyond them, especially if Ameobi plays, but a United team with Rooney, Giggs, Ferdinand and Vidic are a tough nut to crack. They don’t go two games in a row without scoring very often at all and if Rooney does misfire then Hernandez and Berbatov are liable to chip in. Ferguson’s troops enjoy this fixture with 13 wins in their last 16 against Newcastle. It’s been ten years since they lost at St James’ Park and I expect these trends to continue, given the various team news. It should be close, but United to win 2-1 at 15/2 with Coral looks great value.