Pardew never feared Newcastle axe
Despite it being a difficult season on Tyneside, Alan Pardew has said to Teamtalk that he never feared for his position at St. James’ Park.
Pardew succeeded Chris Hughton in December 2010, and got the fans on-side last season after some attractive football brought great results to Newcastle, as they finished a brilliant fifth in the league.
This season has been far tougher and the manager had to contend with a catalogue of injuries, combined with a sudden loss of form and confidence and the departure of star striker Demba Ba to Chelsea in the January transfer window.
However, momentum has been gained with recent victories away at Aston Villa and at home to Chelsea, along with a series of new signings in the last month.
Pardew was given an eight-year contract by chairman Mike Ashley in October, and despite the drop in results which saw the Magpies slide to 16th and perilously close to the drop zone - there were no fears over his future as the Geordies boss.
He said: “It’s rare in football to have the position that even with the results I’ve had; the message from upstairs was that I was going to be retained as manager. Perhaps our fans weren’t quite as happy about that at the time, but I have to try and reward the club for the backing they gave me now.
“So far, we’ve got two great results and we have to build on that.”
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