For Newcastle United fans, the journey back from trips to Anfield and Old Trafford along the M62 has became a predictable and tedious experience.
And while you would have to dust down the history books and go back to 1972 for the last win over Manchester United in front of the Stretford End, and to 1994 for Newcastle's last victory against Liverpool on Merseyside, the Magpies are yet to get off the mark at Manchester City's Eastlands home.
And whatever you want to call it, whether it be the City of Manchester Stadium or the Etihad – the venue has not been kind to the Magpies since the Citizens moved from Maine Road.
It was at the Moss Side ground that Newcastle last experienced a win in Manchester, Alan Shearer scoring a late winner for Sir Bobby Robson's side in September 2000.
Injuries to star names like Michael Owen, Joey Barton and Hatem Ben Arfa have haunted United, and a winless run of eight visits to the stadium which was originally built for the Commonwealth Games in 2002 has made for a miserable time for Geordie fans at the venue.
Indeed, the last four visits have all ended in defeat, with Eastlands the ONLY venue in the top flight where Newcastle have never experienced a victory.
Champions-elect City inflicted United's first Premier League defeat of the season on another day when nothing fell for the Magpies at Eastlands. A penalty award just four minutes before the break when Yaya Toure fired the ball against the hand of Ryan Taylor allowed Mario Balotelli to open the scores before Micah Richards gave Newcastle a mountain to climb.
And by the time Dan Gosling had became the 100th player to score in the Premier League for Newcastle there were few positives to cling to for Geordie supporters.
Forget the defeat, the main thing Newcastle fans will remember this game for is Nigel De Jong's horror challenge on Hatem Ben Arfa.
The foul – just like Callum McManaman's on Massadio Haidara last week – went unpunished and there was no retrospective action by the FA.
But on a day of no justice, Newcastle fan Adam Johnson rubbed salt into the wounds to score the winning goal for City.
Joey Barton was soon joining him on the injury list in the game with a broken foot sustained in the same game, decimating his season until May.
Andy Carroll (pictured) pulled one back in the closing stages but in a further twist, Kinnear called Charles N'Zogbia by the name of "Charles Insomnia" to conclude an ill-fated night.
N'Zogbia slapped in a transfer request and by the end of the month Republic of Ireland international Given was also a City player too.
An Oba Martins goal put his side ahead but more pain was to follow as the goals flowed and Newcastle were put back in their place.
In an awful game, the contest only livened up a touch in the second period and in the final minute Nobby Solano looked to have won it when his 20-yard drive at goal was heading for the net – only for team-mate Antoine Sibierski to get in the way and deflect it wide on the return to his old club.
The straw that broke the camel's back, though, wasn't any of the three goals that left United on the ropes again at Eastlands.
Indeed, it was the sight of Lee Clark and Scott Parker running into each other for disorganised Newcastle that proved to be the moment that tipped then- chairman Freddy Shepherd over the edge.
A banner that read: "Souness out!" before the game summed it all up for the struggling Magpies and the next morning the Scot was sacked and replaced by Academy director Glenn Roeder.
The Premier League's all-time leading scorer netted his 250th goal in the competition with a fantastic long-distance strike after hammering home a pass from Titus Bramble.
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