Newcastle are aiming to buck a trend of miserable results in Greater Manchester this weekend. Mark Douglas reports

IT used to be capital punishment down in London – now Greater Manchester is where Newcastle fear to tread.

United famously went 29 games in London without winning before a 3-1 victory at Highbury in 2001 ended the jinx, paving the way for a relatively impressive record in the Big Smoke ever since.

Manchester, though, is an entirely different matter. Somehow the wheels seem to come off when black and white crosses into a Greater Manchester postcode, last weekend’s 3-1 reverse at the Etihad Stadium actually one of the brighter moments they have experienced in that area over the last five years.

The Journal’s research shows Newcastle have won just three times in 25 games in the Greater Manchester postcode since 2005, a record which includes some truly wince-inducing trips to Old Trafford.

By contrast, London has proved a pleasant place to play – with an impressive eight victories in 25 trips down south.

The Manchester mitigation is that Old Trafford is a difficult place to go.

Only a handful of sides have beaten English football’s dominant force on their own patch in the Premier League era – and our United have gone close once or twice in between some truly miserable defeats.

Surely Bolton, Blackburn and Wigan, all meagre forces in the top flight, should have been dispatched with more regularity than three wins in the last 25 attempts?

As a stat-fiend Alan Pardew will probably note these troubling statistics and then chuck them in the bin in his sparsely decorated office.

That would be the wisest move, because United will not travel to Old Trafford harbouring any sense of inferiority after the way they played against Manchester City on Saturday.

The Newcastle delegation which made its way to Manchester last night will have been just as encouraged by the evidence from the opposition camp.

As Portuguese champions Benfica proved conclusively on Tuesday night, there are gaping holes to exploit in this Manchester United defence if you are tempted to press hard enough.

United fans should not worry about whether Pardew sends out a team to attack.