Manchester United will look to take full advantage of Manchester City's slipup when they host Southampton in their English Premier League game Wednesday.
United can move back to a seven-point lead with all three points against the ever-improving Saints, after City lost the chance to close the gap to two points, following a 0-0 draw against Queens Park Rangers.
The Red Devils lost their seven-point advantage in the last round of fixtures, when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Tottenham, thanks to a late goal from Clint Dempsey.
Sir Alex Ferguson is sure to put out a strong lineup, after resting the likes of Robin Van Persie, Rio Ferdinand and Nemanja Vidic in the F.A. Cup tie against Fulham, and Southampton can expect a barrage of attacks in the 90 minutes at the Theater of Dreams.
"Teams will drop points (in the title race), Ferguson said. "Not just us but Manchester City will drop points, absolutely, it's a certainty.
"Chelsea and Arsenal will drop points. We'll probably drop two or three ourselves but the important thing is accepting the challenge that every game is just as difficult as the rest."
Ferguson admitted he was not too aware of Southampton's new manager Mauricio Pochettino, who was appointed as the new boss after the firing of Nigel Adkins, a move which has not gone down too well with the Saints faithful.
"I don't know a lot about him to be honest but I will have a chat with my brother (Martin) as he's been scouting in Spain," Ferguson added. "It won't matter in this particular game as he's just at the club but they had a fantastic response against Everton.
"They should have won as they were superb and could have been five-up in the first half. Tim Howard had a fantastic game, they hit the woodwork and Rickie Lambert missed a couple of chances. They played really well against Everton who are at the top of their game and playing really well.
"So we're not taking anything for granted. We've got Southampton on Wednesday, then we go to Fulham and then it's Everton at home. These are big games, massive games."
Winger Ashley Young (knee) and defender Jonny Evans (hamstring) are ruled out, but Ferguson will have the rest of the squad at his disposal.
Southampton, who are 16th on 23 points, three clear of the relegation zone, welcome back skipper Adam Lallana, after the midfielder missed nearly two months through injury, while new signing Vegard Forren could make his debut. Jose Fonte and Guly do Prado, though, remain sidelined.
Expected Lineups: Manchester United: De Gea; Rafael, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra; Carrick, Cleverley, Kagawa, Valencia; Rooney; Van Persie.
Southampton: Boruc; Clyne, Yoshida, Hooiveld, Shaw; Cork, Schneiderlin; Puncheon, Ramirez, Rodriguez; Lambert.
Prediction: 4-1 to United
