GLENN Roeder has told his Newcastle players they need to overcome their Old Trafford "fear factor" if they are to maintain the stellar progress they have shown under his caretaker control when they take on Manchester United tomorrow.

While the Magpies will travel across the Pennines on the back of a six-game unbeaten run, history is hardly on their side as they look to inflict a rare home upset on Sir Alex Ferguson's Carling Cup winners.

Newcastle's last Old Trafford win came in March 1972 but, while the club's subsequent 22 visits have ended in disappointment, Roeder insists there is no reason for an inferiority complex ahead of this weekend's renewal of hostilities.

Ironically, Roeder boasts more success on the ground than his players - he was in charge of West Ham when Jermain Defoe's winner sunk the Red Devils in 2001 - and, after watching his side grow in confidence since Graeme Souness' dismissal last month, the caretaker boss claims a positive mindset is a prerequisite if the Magpies' fortunes are to be reversed tomorrow.

"Fear is a very restricting human emotion," said Roeder, who insists his temporary position is still being reviewed on a game-to-game basis. "It creates a ball and chain effect around your legs. If you're frightened, I don't see how you can perform to your best.

"I've spoken to the players and tried to make them realise that, 99 times out of 100, the thing that you fear doesn't happen. If that is the case, what is the point in being fearful in the first place?

"Some human beings find that easy to understand, others find it extremely difficult. But, if you work on it, you can bring them round to a much more positive way of thinking.

"I'm not a believer in all of this superstitious stuff anyway. Lucky grounds, unlucky grounds - they're all the same to me.

"There won't be many teams have a great record at Old Trafford and I'm sure there are teams with a far worse record there than us. This is a new game and we're all looking forward to it."

While Roeder is currently still regarded as an outsider for Newcastle's permanent managerial post, his stock will rise considerably if he is able to orchestrate a surprise away win.

Victories over the likes of Portsmouth, Aston Villa and Everton have rekindled hopes of European qualification, but even the 41-year-old's strongest admirer would be forced to concede that, up until now, the fixture list has played into his hands

With games against Liverpool and Chelsea still to come in the next 11 days though, his honeymoon period is about to come to an abrupt end.

"The next three opponents are of the highest quality," admitted Roeder. "But that doesn't mean the teams we've beaten so far haven't been very difficult to play against.

"We've played teams in form like Everton and Bolton and broken long unbeaten runs. We're in form ourselves, but the next three games would obviously be a test for any club.

"How far have we come? I suppose we'll find out on Sunday. But I'm very positive. We have to approach the game positively because there's a massive difference between being respectful and being too respectful to a team like Manchester United."

Roeder is likely to name an unchanged side, despite Kieron Dyer and Titus Bramble both stepping up their recovery from their respective hamstring problems this week.

Dyer is especially close to a senior return but, after the midfielder broke down in the wake of last month's match-winning display against Southampton, his caretaker boss is understandably reluctant to take any risks with an FA Cup quarter-final just a week-and-a-half away.

Roeder is willing to be similarly patient with Owen and, when he was asked whether the striker would have recovered from his foot injury in time to feature at Stamford Bridge, the former Newcastle defender conceded "probably not".

He was, however, desperate to dismiss midweek reports that had hinted at a major setback to Owen's planned recovery.

"He hasn't suffered a setback," said Roeder. "And I don't know where that rumour came from.

"We're now in a completely different era to the time of a bucket of cold water and a sponge and, from the moment he got injured, we have had a detailed programme mapped out for him.

"As part of that programme, we had scans and X-rays along the way and Monday was one of the days set aside for his tests. He wasn't here for two days because he was back in Manchester where he had the operation.

"He was back here on Wednesday, though, and he trained on both Wednesday and Thursday without trouble."

Owen's absence precludes a potentially explosive head-to-head with fellow England international Rio Ferdinand.

Ferdinand's lack of form has been the subject of much recent debate, with the shakiness of this month's display against Uruguay placing his World Cup starting spot in doubt.

The centre-half had left for Leeds by the time Roeder took charge of West Ham but, after working with him in a coaching capacity at Upton Park, the former defender insists his former protg would be a shoe-in for any side he was asked to select.

"I worked with Rio for both England and West Ham," he said. "And I would have him in my team every single time.

"When he was sold from West Ham, they were doing really well after about 18 games. For the remainder of that season, they took just about enough points to stay up. That alone would suggest Rio's a very big and important player.

"He has a lapse of concentration every now and then but, at the end of the day, who doesn't? In life, you get tagged with all sorts of things, and he's been tagged as someone who makes one or two errors.

"Perhaps he does - but the 'head it and kick it' defender also makes mistakes. I know who I'd prefer to have in my side.

"Both the Ferdinands - Rio and Anton - are the sort of central defenders that I'd like to have in my team."

* West Ham boss Alan Pardew has pipped Roeder to the Barclays Manager of the Month award for February.

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