WHEN it comes to analysing strike partnerships Stuart Pearce should know what he is talking about.

After all, as a world class defender the former England international has come up against some of the best the game has to offer.

And after watching his Manchester City side outplayed in the opening 45 minutes of Saturday's defeat, former Magpie Pearce is convinced that his old side have struck gold in pairing the evergreen Alan Shearer with the still blossoming Michael Owen.

Prior to Owen's arrival on Tyneside the Magpies were the only team in the English professional game without a goal to their name and were close to the foot of the Premiership.

After barely a year in the job Graeme Souness' neck was reportedly on the chopping block.

Enter stage left Owen and what a difference a couple of weeks makes.

Although he failed to score on his debut, Owen has now found the back of the net twice in three games and from a precarious league position United are now sampling the rarified atmosphere that is the top ten.

Saturday's single goal victory owed much to the Shearer-Owen strikeforce.

While the former England captain was giving the defence all kinds of headaches with his physical approach, his younger sidekick was giving them the runaround with his quick feet on the edge of the box.

Owen could have had a hat-trick such was United's dominance in the opening period, but he was forced to settle for an 18th minute strike that came courtesy of a Lee Bowyer through ball which he ran onto before poking under the body of keeper David James.

"Alan knows football and knows how to get the best out of himself," observed Pearce.

"He is an intelligent player. Once he has lost his pace, like Teddy Sheringham, he is not prepared to just keep doing the things he has done.

"He has sat back and thought 'how can I impose the tools that I have got in my body now on the opposition?' He plays to the best of his ability in respect of that.

"With Michael, they have got somebody who can threaten in behind which might allow Alan to get a bit more space into feet.

"On paper it's an ideal partnership.

"Alan is the physical muscle up there with the kid that will go and get the headlines getting in behind.

"That's why you pay £15m for one and £16m for the other. It's a lot of money so they have got to deliver."

Whereas last season and in the early part of this Newcastle have quickly run out of ideas if things haven't been going their way, the addition of a truly global star in Owen up front has given the ten players plying their trade alongside the belief that even if the going is getting tough they have in the 25-year-old the tool to finish the job.

That is something not lost on manager Souness who must be sleeping like a baby just a few weeks after constantly looking in the wardrobes for monsters.

"We have not had people running away from back fours and getting in one-on-ones with goalkeepers," he said.

"I don't think anyone enjoys playing against Alan Shearer with his power and Michael's pace.

"When you are playing against pace the temptation is to drop off all the time and that should give you more room to play in."

They certainly had plenty of room to play in during the first half as City, on their way to their third successive defeat in league and cup competitions in the space of seven days, were a pale shadow of the side who had been garnering so many plaudits.

Things may have been different had Shay Given not been at his best to stop Antoine Sibierski's early header after a quick free-kick on the right.

From then on though it was one way traffic with the home side monopolising possession.

Owen's goal was just reward for their early endeavours and when the lively Charles N'Zogbia sent a lofted cross to the far post shortly after it looked like being 2-0 as Shearer steamed in. However, his header needed to be a couple of inches lower and went over.

Owen could have doubled his tally in the 38th minute when an error by former Magpie Sylvain Distin in his own half let in Shearer.

The United captain slid the ball through to Owen but instead of putting the ball to one side of James he tried to fire underneath and the keeper blocked.

He almost made up for this profligacy shortly before the break when from an acute angle on the right of the box he fired just over.

The anticipated City revival came in the second half, due in the main to the industry of Joey Barton, however, when they found the chance to get an effort on goal they either went high or wide.

Even though City were seeing more of the ball, the Magpies never really looked in any danger and Owen, sought by crosses from Lee Clark and Bowyer, was still causing trouble.

"I thought in the first half we played some good football, passed it, kept it well and got a goal," said Souness.

"Give credit to Manchester City in the second-half, we knew there would be a reaction because I thought we dominated so much of the first half.

"They had a fair bit of the ball in the second half but I can't remember Shay having to make too many saves."

Result: Newcastle United 1, Manchester City 0.

Clark hits a milestone

LEE Clark made the most of the 500th appearance of his club career in the knowledge that he might have to settle for a lesser role in coming weeks.

Clark, who moved back to Tyneside from Fulham this season, became the 50th Magpie to make 200 appearances for the club when he turned out against Manchester City and was presented with a silver salver before the game.

He is clearly still enjoying his football at the age of 32 but experience has brought with it a realistic approach to the game, especially as Newcastle have a wealth of midfield talent waiting on the sidelines ahead of next week's trip to Portsmouth.

Emre and Kieron Dyer should be vying for a return to action and Nolberto Solano is not far behind them, all of which means Clark may be asked to vacate his central berth.

"I just want to carry on getting on this surfboard and catching the crest of this wave, it's unbelievable," said Clark.

"(But) it's the manager's decision (whether I am picked or not). They are all fantastic players and I am being genuine when I say I want them all back because I think we can go to any ground in the division and not fear anybody when we have got the whole collection of players fit.

"I am an experienced player now and am a lot calmer in these situations. When I was a young boy I was bit hot-headed and if I was left out I couldn't see beyond my own position.

"But now, with a few more years behind me, I can see the bigger picture."

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