United’s 3-0 defeat at St James Park last season put a severe dent in Ferguson’s title ambitions and the Scot knows his side can’t afford a repeat following last weekend’s surprise home loss to Tottenham.

Ferguson said: “When you lose a game you have to recover. We lost a game to Tottenham, we have to recover again. It’s as simple as that. Hopefully we can get a result Sunday, but it won’t be easy.”