London – Champions Manchester United's hopes of retaining their English Premier League title suffered another major setback on Saturday when they were beaten 1-0 at Old Trafford by a composed Newcastle United.
A well-taken 61st minute goal, stroked in from 10 metres by French midfielder Yohan Cabaye, condemned new manager David Moyes' outfit to a second home defeat in four days and their third in eight outings this season.
The Manchester team, without suspended England striker Wayne Rooney and showing seven changes from the side defeated by Everton by the same score on Wednesday, were easily subdued by well-organised visitors who triumphed with few alarms.
It was the first time they had suffered back-to-back home defeats since May, 2002, and the result left them ninth, 12 points behind leaders Arsenal, who host Everton on Sunday.
Victory, their first at Old Trafford since February 1972, lifted Newcastle above Tottenham Hotspur into sixth place. – Reuters