Queens Park Rangers travel to Manchester United in desperate need of a victory to stay afloat in such an early part of the season, while also being mindful of a United backlash after the Red Devils' shock 1-0 defeat to Norwich last weekend.
United relinquished their hold on the league table, with their disappointing 1-0, and another 1-0 defeat to Galatasaray in the Champions League, albeit with an under-strength side, means the 19-time champions are on a two-game losing streak.
There is no way that Ferguson will accept his side losing three games on the bounce, which again does not bode too well for the under-pressure side, who fired manager Mark Hughes with experienced Harry Redknapp set to take charge. No. 2 Mark Bowen is expected to take charge for the United game.
United are second in the table on 27 points from 12 games, while QPR are rock bottom on four points, already four points adrift of second bottom Southampton - the team they lost 3-1 to last weekend.
The fixture on Saturday, while having added significance due to QPR's plight, would be an encounter that the London side would not have expected to get anything out of anyways - therefore a positive result might just tip the scales in QPR's favor as they try to climb out of the mire.
There is no better way to bring positivity to your team than to win against one of the bigger clubs - something that Norwich City will attest to after their 1-0 success against Arsenal was followed by a good run of results and culminated in the 1-0 win over United last weekend.
QPR veteran Ryan Nelsen admitted his team needed to "stand up and be counted." "When the pressure is on, players have to take responsibility," he told the club's official website. "It doesn't matter who you're playing, the Premier League is just unforgiving. You've got to earn your right to play and win.
"You've got to be strong mentally and have the confidence to do something in the game at both ends of the park.
"Every game from now until the end of the season is a 'stand up and be counted' game.
"Every player's got to hold their hands up and do everything they can for this club to get out of where we are."
United, on the other hand, have plenty to play for, with Man City, who are looking good in the league, and Chelsea, under new manager Rafa Benitez, set to lock horns on Sunday. United could go two points clear with a victory over QPR and with it put the pressure back on their title rivals.
Saturday's game will also be a special occasion for Ferguson, with his statue to be unveiled at Old Trafford on Friday, and United's players are sure to want to crown the honor with a win.
Wayne Rooney should return to the United lineup, after missing the last two games, with Nani also likely to figure in the squad, although Shinji Kagawa remains ruled out. Ferguson rested the majority of his senior players for the Champions League game in midweek, and will be happy to see his first-choice XI make a return.
For QPR, Bobby Zamora has been ruled out for the long term, meaning Djibril Cisse will keep his place up top. Park Ji-Sung has trained this week and is likely to play against his former club.
Saturday's game at Old Trafford can go two ways - one, where the Red Devils bounce back from a shock defeat and pile on the misery on the bottom club, or two, where QPR finally come out of their shell and produce a result that will see them post their first victory in the Premier League this season.
Knowing United and Sir Alex Ferguson, though, QPR might just be in for a tough afternoon in Manchester.
Expected lineups: Manchester United: De Gea; Rafael, Ferdinand, Smalling, Evra; Carrick, Scholes, Valencia, Young, Rooney; Van Persie.
QPR: Julio Cesar; Bosingwa, Ferdinand, Nelsen, Traore; Diakite, Faurlin, Granero, Taarabt, Hoilett; Cisse.
Prediction: 2-0 to United
