Alan Pardew warns his Newcastle players to avoid hat-trick of defeats - The Guardian

Newcastle's manager, Alan Pardew, has challenged his players to avoid an unwanted hat-trick following a second successive home defeat which has dropped them into the bottom half of the table.

This latest setback left the natives in restless mood as hopes of matching last season's top-five finish were dealt a further blow. But United will run out in front of their fans once again on Thursday to face Marítimo of Portugal in a game which could secure their progression to the knockout stage of the Europa League, and Pardew is hoping that will prove the incentive they need.

He said: "It's a big game for us because if we can win it, it guarantees qualification, and that's what we need to do, get one hurdle out of the way and then look for our first win away from home in the Premier League in the next game. They are the two immediate hurdles in front of us."

While the men from Madeira may not provide the sternest test Newcastle will face this season, victory is a must to restore confidence. Pardew's men will return to Premier League action at Southampton on Sunday and then head to Stoke, where a repeat of their 3-1 victory last season looks unlikely. In mitigation, they faced Swansea without four regular starters – Fabricio Coloccini was suspended, Yohan Cabaye and Jonás Gutiérrez were injured and Papiss Cissé, much to the annoyance of player and manage, was unavailable after the Senegal Football Federation invoked Fifa's five-day rule following his no-show for their midweek friendly against Niger. The 27-year-old striker also revealed he will be considering his position as Senegal captain, while Newcastle, "dismayed and angry", are taking legal advice.

Pardew said: "The decision over Papiss was baffling, and that was a blow to us because in the first 60 minutes we would have expected Papiss to come up with a goal there."

In the event, the lack of depth was exposed as a team including Davide Santon, Vurnon Anita – the only senior summer signing – Shane Ferguson and Sammy Ameobi, and teenaged substitute Gaël Bigirimana, succumbed disappointingly.

Swansea took the lead when Pablo Hernández was allowed time and space on the left to cross for Michu to head firmly past Tim Krul for his eighth goal of the season. The game was effectively over with three minutes remaining when Danny Graham forced Krul to parry his effort, offering Jonathan de Guzman the chance to smash the rebound home. Demba Ba pulled a goal back in injury time after substitute Sylvain Marveaux's shot had come back off the crossbar.