Arsenal star: Newcastle’s performance at Man Utd shows their threat

Friday, December 28, 2012
3:38 PM

Captain Thomas Vermaelen has warned Arsenal that hitting three goals past Manchester United at Old Trafford proves that Newcastle will pose a serious threat on Saturday.

Alan Pardew’s side were in front three times against United on Boxing Day but eventually went down to a last minute winner from Javier Hernandez to lose 4-3.

Vermaelen says it is a surprise to see Newcastle so low in the table and has urged his team-mates not to take them lightly.

“I thought Newcastle did very well against Manchester United, so they’ll clearly pose a threat this weekend,” he told Arsenal’s official matchday programme.

“Scoring three goals there [at Old Trafford] is always a good achievement, and in that situation you’d usually expect to come away with a draw or a win.

“United always seem to score one more goal than their opponents at the moment, though, and that proved to be the case again.

“Newcastle’s position in the table surprises me, especially when you look at how well they did last season. Most of their team is the same, and they put in some amazing performances back then.

“I think they deserve more points than they currently have, but we know very well that things can change quickly in this league. It will be a very hard game for us and we need to be ready.”