Man Utd could only stretch their Premier League lead by a point after being held to a goalless draw by Newcastle at St James' Park.
Red Devils forced to share spoils with spirited Newcastle
Manchester United could only stretch their lead at the top of the Premier League by a point after being held to a goalless draw by Newcastle at St James' Park.
Sir Alex Ferguson's men were unable to bounce back from Saturday's FA Cup disappointment, where they crashed out to local rivals Manchester City, as the Magpies produced a determined display on Tuesday night to clinch a share of the spoils.
The stalemate leaves United seven points clear of nearest rivals Arsenal, meaning the door is still open for the Gunners in the title race with six games remaining, with Arsene Wenger's men travelling to Tottenham on Wednesday evening.
But the point provides welcome relief for Alan Pardew's side, who had previously suffered three defeats in four games, allowing them to reach the crucial 40-point mark and leapfrog Aston Villa into ninth place in the table.
Chances
The Tyneside clash produced plenty of chances for both sides, most notably when Javier Hernandez almost hit home for United from point-blank range in the second minute, only for Toon goalkeeper Tim Krul to get down and make a brave and crucial block.
The other golden opportunity of the clash came for the home side when Joey Barton fired in a superb delivery to set up Peter Lovenkrands, but the Toon man's headed effort went wide.
There was late controversy in stoppage time when United were denied a penalty after Danny Simpson appeared to bring down Hernandez in the area, with referee Lee Probert instead booking the Mexican hitman for diving.
Wayne Rooney and Ryan Giggs had earlier come close in the second half as United hunted desperately for the winner, but the Red Devils were ultimately unable to break the deadlock as the home side snatched a point.
The days when Newcastle competed with United both on the pitch over 90 minutes and over the season seem a distant memory, and Ferguson's men arrived on Tyneside having not lost a league game to the Magpies in 17 attempts dating back to September 2001.
They did so still smarting from their FA Cup semi-final exit at the hands of arch-rivals City and determined to make amends by extending their lead at the top of the table.
But Pardew had promised that his team, who started the night still not assured of their place in next season's top flight, would give United a game, and in the opening 45 minutes they certainly did that.
The visitors, who did not include Rio Ferdinand or the sick Dimitar Berbatov among their 18 at St James' Park, tested Krul after just two minutes when he was forced to block Hernandez's effort, and the Dutchman was delighted to see full-back Jose Enrique get his body into the line of the Mexican's goal-bound injury-time shot.
But in the meantime, the Magpies gave as good as they got in an entertaining first-half during which they too created chances.
Chris Smalling got enough on Jonas Gutierrez's fifth-minute attempt to deflect it around the post, and Edwin van der Sar had to save from Shola Ameobi, Lovenkrands and Cheik Tiote in quick succession.
Krul made another fine save from Rooney after he burst through on 19 minutes, although Probert clearly did not spot his intervention as he awarded only a goal-kick.
United gradually eased into full flow with the movement of the Rooney and Hernandez and Nani's pace causing problems for Newcastle, who dropped ever deeper as the half wore on.
