Newcastle boss Steve McClaren has no interest in league table

Newcastle manager Steve McClaren says he has no interest in the current Premier League table ahead of Sunday's derby with Sunderland.

The Magpies moved off the foot of the table following last weekend's 6-2 defeat of Norwich, and in the process sent neighbours Sunderland to bottom spot.

But former England and Derby boss McClaren insists with 28 games of the season remaining his focus remains formly on the pitch.

"I'm not even looking at the table at the present moment," he said., "It's been a head-down week, focusing on the game. We won't look at the league table until we get a few wins. There's a long way to go in the season."

Newcastle go into the game hoping to avoid a sixth successive defeat to the Black Cats, and McClaren is keen to point out previous derby results will have no bearing on how he approaches this week's Sky Live showdown.

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"We don't do that on any other game so we are not preparing for this any differently, and why should we?" he said. "Why should we put any more importance on this?

"That would be saying that we are not putting importance on any other game. In this Premier League, every game is vital and Sunday is no different. It's a little bit special because the fans are also competing against each other."