Soccer-Goal-shy Newcastle's McClaren coy over January striker

Jan 11 (Reuters) - Newcastle United manager Steve McClaren admitted on Monday his struggling side lacked firepower up front, but he stayed coy when asked if he expected to sign a striker during the January transfer window. Saturday's 1-0 FA Cup loss to Watford condemned the Magpies to their fourth straight defeat in all competitions. They sit third from bottom of the Premier League having scored just 19 goals after 20 games. "It's not rocket science. You need to defend, keep clean sheets and have players who can score you goals," McClaren told British media when asked if a new striker was on the way. "...We need to win games 2-1 because we keep getting punished for our (defensive) mistakes. The transfer window runs from Jan 1 to 31. McClaren's charges head into Tuesday's Premier League clash with fifth-place Manchester United, who have won just two of their last 10 games, knowing a win could take them out of the three-team relegation zone. He urged supporters to keep faith with the team. "(My) players haven't got down at all and I don't expect them to on Tuesday either," McClaren said. "What we need is 50,000 supporters right behind us from the first whistle." (Reporting by Shravanth Vijayakumar in Bengaluru; editing by John Stonestreet)