Reflections On The Pardew Era

The Toon Army can finally exhale. After months of protest-filled angst, Alan Pardew has finally taken his leave. Like the majority of the fans, I'm happy to see him go. For one thing, our sparse output on the blog is partly attributed to Pardew's tactical predictability. After four years of watching the man work, it felt like we had said all there was to be said. Making the same observations 10 or 20 times over didn't seem like a productive use of my time, and reading my fatigued analysis probably wouldn't have been a worthwhile use of yours. But now he's off to Crystal Palace, and we can all hit the reset button.

Honestly, when he first washed up on the banks of the Tyne, I had a lot of sympathy for the man. Sure, he ended up at a club with a lot of prestige and history, and was being paid handsomely to walk the touchline at St. James' Park, but the situation was difficult for him before the ink dried on his initial contract. Here's another excerpt of my unfinished manuscript which touches on his early days at the club:

Most managers hired at midseason can count on some goodwill from their new fans. After all, it usually takes a stretch of poor performance to force a change. But Pardew was under siege from the moment his appointment was announced. Before he ever led the club out for a single match, the popular Newcastle-Online forum had over 2,500 posts in response, virtually all negative. His introductory press conference was parsed for every slip of the tongue, each mistake a sharpened dagger pointed right at Pardew himself.

Pardew was punished dearly for replacing a good man (if a mediocre manager) in Chris Hughton, then immediately had the rug pulled out from under him when Andy Carroll was sold to Liverpool. You can say that he knew what he was walking into when he took the job, but it's not as if he was to blame for either situation.

Since then, we've all been on the rollercoaster together. I know the 2011-12 season has been touted to death by Pardew's defenders, almost to the point that we've forgotten how great it was. But that season did produce some of my fondest memories as a Newcastle supporter, and I will appreciate Pardew for the role he played in those memories.

In the end, though, it's best for us and for him that he's gone. Pardew clearly was not taking the club any further, and he didn't know how to get the best out of many of the players in the squad. When someone like Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa is barely given a sniff in his natural position, then immediately finds himself starting for a club in the Champions League and the French national team after his departure, it's a sign that the manager is not making the most of the talent he's being given. No doubt Pardew would argue that Newcastle wasn't bringing in his sort of players. To me, that sounds like a perfect reason to cut ties and find a new manager whose style fits the squad.

And that, of course, is the ultimate question we're faced with now: do we trust Mike Ashley to appoint a suitable replacement? Maybe Graham Carr has a candidate or two whom he thinks would mesh well with the players he's brought in. If not, I imagine I'll probably be writing a version of this piece a season or two from now, once again wondering whether the stars will ever align.

Comments

[@leesibbald]

Just sit back and enjoy the new twist section in the nufc roller coaster! The King is dead, long live the King!

P.s. "Do we trust Mike Ashley..." - I'll stop you right there with "NO".

[rob]

Great post. Pardew wasn't the answer at this club but the big problem is and will always be Ashley until he finally leaves Tyneside.

[Dave from Newcastle]

Definitely time for everyone to part ways. In a league where managers are changed as often as a pair of pants it is remarkable to Pards lasted as long as he did. In retrospect it would have been best for everyone had he been sacked last summer- or at least after the Myler incident.

50 years from now the three moments that will still stick with me from Pardew's reign are:
-Cisse's wundergoal at Stamford Bridge
-Pardew's masterpiece against Mourinho Oct 2013
-Getting drilled at home by DiCanio and Sunderland when NUFC could have rendered them relegated

I'm definitely hopeful for the next act, even knowing that might not happen until June.

Thanks Alan...now leave

[MedatativeMag]

Like others I am pleased that it looks as though he is leaving us. No point speculating as to the future as Ashley will do what he wants when he wants. I agree entirely with the comment on getting the best from players. We have had good people who have had their careers stunted by his inability to see what was before him. Best to you all for 2015.