IT may sound like bravado, but Newcastle United centre-back Nikos Dabizas has a blunt message for Liverpool's Michael Owen: "We don't fear you.''

The statistics suggest the Magpies should - Owen has scored 12 goals in his eight appearances against them.

But Dabizas insists his teammates must forget any fixation with the England striker as they head for tonight's televised Anfield showdown.

Newcastle and Liverpool are the clubs closest to the heart of Manchester City manager Kevin Keegan.

And the Kop icon who became a Geordie Messiah has given United even greater incentive for a long-overdue victory at Anfield.

Keegan's City inflicted defeat on the Magpies at Maine Road nine days ago, and Sir Bobby Robson's men are anxious to bury the memory of a setback that called into question the manager's tactics.

Newcastle's record in the red corner of Merseyside offers no grounds for optimism.

Danny Murphy emerged as a new Nemesis in March when he scored twice as Liverpool romped to a 3-0 victory and Newcastle suffered their eighth successive Premiership loss at Anfield since winning 2-0 there nine seasons ago.

Greek international Dabizas, however, sounded a defiant note. "Yes, it's a difficult game,'' he said. "We lost our first away game in the Premiership this season and there is going to be a lot of pressure on us.

"We have to defend well, get the ball and not give away chances. But Michael Owen didn't score against us the last time we played there.

"Maybe we talk too much about him. Whenever we play Liverpool, home or away, everybody talks about Michael Owen and what he has done to us.

"But it's not about Michael Owen, it's about keeping all their players quiet.

"Of course he is a good player and it's not easy keeping him quiet, but Liverpool have a lot of good players to concentrate on.

"What's the point of keeping Michael Owen quiet and somebody else doing the damage? We do not fear Michael Owen - no way.''

Dabizas has a new defensive sidekick in Titus Bramble, who arrived from Ipswich in the close season in a £5m deal.

Already questions are being asked about the partnership, but Dabizas maintains his side must defend as a whole - and is calling on Kieron Dyer and Gary Speed to track back more often.

"It's not about Titus and me,'' he said. "It's about us defending as a team. It's up to everybody. We have to keep the ball better than we did at Maine Road.

"Gary Speed and Kieron Dyer are midfielders who like to get forward and that leaves the defence exposed.

"It's important to have a defensive mentality away from home. I have not got good memories of Anfield. Since I came here we haven't even drawn there.

"The nearest was when we lost to a Jamie Redknapp goal in the last minute.

"We have to defend better away from home. That doesn't mean sitting back, because if you do that against a team like Liverpool, you have no chance. We have to defend well and still create chances.

"We need a positive result after Manchester City. We don't want two successive defeats in the Premiership. Good teams don't lose two games in a row, and we are a good team.

"But we know we will have to be at our best.''

Newcastle's first-team coach John Carver insists that qualification for the Champions' League, courtesy of an ultimately emphatic victory over Bosnians NK Zeljeznicar, has served as a morale-booster.

He admitted: "It was a huge disappointment at Manchester City, but winning 4-0 on the night was a fantastic result last Wednesday and that will give us confidence going into this game.

"It'll be tough. Liverpool were one of the few sides to do the double over us last season - we have to pay them back for that.

"The pressure is on them a bit. It's probably the best squad they've had since the late 70s, early 80s, and the pressure is on them to win the title.

"We know they have pace and we will be working on that with the players. We also know what our record is like against Liveroool - and Michael Owen.

"He's had a lean spell and we hope it continues, but that after this game he can get a few goals for himself.

"It's down to our players to show what they can produce. We have scored eight goals in our last three games and only conceded one, so we are no slouches ourselves.

"We are going into Europe with one of the top guys. Who better to guide us through than Sir Bobby, who has seen it all and done it all?

"It's a great learning experience for the rest of us.

"Now it's about how we react to the Manchester City defeat. We need consistency. We are aware that Liverpool have a bit of an Indian sign over us.

"They have a great record against us, but records are there to be broken. We have no inferiority complex."

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