Newcastle manager Alan Pardew has stated that his side will attack Manchester United on Wednesday night.

The Tyneside club have come unstuck over the last month, as a number of tricky fixtures have seen them drop down the Premier League standings after a good start.

Despite this, Pardew feels that his team have a chance if they go out and take the game to the Old Trafford outfit.

"Looking at Manchester United's recent games, teams that have sat back have got thumped," he told The Guardian.

"They've got such talent in their ranks, they're going to cause you problems but we have a striker in form and a central midfield pairing that I think is as good as theirs.

"Our back line and goalie have been resolute all year, so we're in a good position to try and attack the game. It's important to retain the ball against United, to make them work but it's also important we make sure we offer a threat," he stated.

Newcastle are set to lose Cheik Tiote and Demba Ba to the African Cup of Nations in the near future, and Pardew has confirmed that The Magpies will be closely monitoring their star duo.

"We're going to try and monitor Cheik and Demba a little bit as best we can while they're away.

"We're trying to contact their FAs to find out exactly what they're doing and what they're not doing. We have complete confidence in their medical teams but we might send someone out there. It's something we've done in the past and we might do again now," he concluded.

By Gareth McKnight

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