That's the warning issued today by former Magpies defender John Anderson, who has claims the club are still in a "mess".

The Magpies, under interim boss Joe Kinnear, stopped the rot of five successive defeats last weekend with a hard-fought 2-2 draw at Everton.

That point was not enough to drag them out of the bottom three, and they may have slipped further into trouble by the time they take the field again a week on Monday for the visit of Manchester City to St James's Park.

Anderson said: "You are never too good to go down. You have seen it happen to teams before.

"Once you get into a rut of losing games, it's very, very difficult to get out of it.

"I know Joe Kinnear is in short-term, but they need the whole situation sorting out quickly, and the players then know exactly what they are doing, who they are working for and who they are playing for, because at this moment in time, they haven't got a clue."

Owner Mike Ashley is desperately trying to offload the club, and Anderson is hoping for a swift resolution to all the uncertainty.

He added:"It's unbelievable for the players. People say it doesn't get to players, but it does.

"Everything that's gone on at this football club has got to everybody, and it is bound to have got to the players.

"The club is just a mess, it is a total mess at the moment, and the sooner it's sold and sorted out, the better it is going to be for everybody."
The sale of the club could run into the new year, which would mean Ashley may still be in charge when the January transfer window opens, leaving him with a major decision.

Anderson, however, is adamant that the squad must be strengthened if the club is to get itself out of trouble.

He said: "You have only got to look at the bench in recent weeks, and there is no strength there whatsoever.

"A lot of those kids who are on the bench now, if everyone was fit and they had a full squad, they would be nowhere near it."