Boss rues missed chances

Sir Alex Ferguson admitted after United drew 2-2 with Newcastle at St James’ Park that his side should have come away with three points after "creating enough chances to win five matches".

At 2-1 early in the second half the only additions to the scoreline looked like coming from the Reds. But the Magpies hit back with a deflected strike from teenage defender David Edgar.

However, despite the dropped points, Sir Alex isn’t too concerned about the implications the result could have on the title race.

“There will be points dropped by both teams,” he told Sky Sports. “There is a real challenge for the championship now. Chelsea are not getting it all their way as they have done in the last two years. We are serious contenders.”

Analysing the match, he added: “We had three cleared off the line, that’s a bit unlucky, and Ryan Giggs, Louis Saha and Ji-sung Park all had good chances. When you are creating chances you would hope you do enough to win, and we should have won the match with the opportunities that we had.”

The United boss was full of praise for Glenn Roeder’s players, who never gave up the cause. “I don’t think we played as well as we have done in recent weeks simply because Newcastle didn’t allow us to play," he added.

"They wanted to be first to every ball, showed determination and character. I’ve got nothing but praise for them. We missed a stack of chances but I have got to admire the spirit and determination of the Newcastle team. They deserved their point without question. When they put in that kind of effort they prove that it’s not an easy place to come to now.”