Baffled And Bewildered But Life Goes On

ALAN PARDEW CONFIRMED AS NEW BOSS 

After praying that the bookies had got this one wrong most Newcastle fans worst nightmares came true as Alan Pardew was yesterday unveiled as the clubs new manager to replace Chris Hughton who was of course sacked earlier in the week. To add to the surprise it was announced that the new man had signed a staggering 5 and a half year contract with the club. 

I may be repeating myself a bit here but until the confirmation even though he was the odds on favourite I was praying that somehow the board were going to pull one out of the bag and bring in a better alternative. This appointment just baffles me in the sense that I really cannot comprehend how Pardew can be seen by the board as any kind of real improvement on Hughton. This would maybe suggest to me that disagreements went on behind the scenes which forced the sacking because certainly the excuse of we want someone with more experience doesn't really fit when the guy coming in has, in the grand scheme of things, not a great deal of Premier League Management experience and the experiences he does have don't appear to be particularly great ones. 

I think the length of the contract really just compounds things too. Considering that Mike Ashley has been through about 6 managers in his 3 years here you would think he would have learnt that giving out long contracts to people that are quite possibly not going to last the length of them is an expensive exercise. The club got a lot of stick for keeping Hughton on a relatively short term contract but I actually thought it was a good idea keeping it short term and obviously reviewing and extending it based on our achievements. 

As I mentioned in a previous post all this upheaval could possibly have been seen as worthwhile had a real big name come in to replace Hughton but to risk upsetting the players and the supporters to bring in someone certainly not really regarded much higher than Hughton is a very very big risk. 

Saying all that though life does go on now and we have to get behind him because he is the new man in charge and there is nothing we can do to change that. In all fairness to him it wasn't his fault Hughton got sacked and it wasn't his fault he got offered the job and lets be honest here I don't think any manager in his position would have turned down this job. 

I watched his press conference today and to be fair I actually thought he came across quite well. He seems an honest and genuine guy who will work his hardest to do well here, obviously whether he does or not is a different matter. 

Since the press conference I have read a few negative comments on some Newcastle sites having a dig at his somewhat predictable answers and compliments to the fans etc but at the end of the day what do people expect him to do in the press conference, slag off the fans and the club and say he doesn't want to be here?? 

Looking desperately for positives here I think he does seem to have some very Hughton like qualities about him. As I say he seems likeable and you also get the impression that he genuinely does feel privileged to get the job much like Hughton did so I think one things for sure he will work his hardest to do well and ultimately stay in the job. 

Like I say the fact of the matter is that he is here so we have to get behind him. Unless someone out there has the money to buy out Mike Ashley we are stuck with him for the time being and he has chosen this guy to be manager whether we like it or not so I personally will at least give him the opportunity to prove himself and fingers crossed prove his many doubters wrong. That happening can only be good for Newcastle United. 

What are people's thoughts on Alan Pardew's appointment and now it has happened will he be up to the job and should the fans be getting behind him even if they don't agree with the decisions??

http://www.toonarmyblog.co.uk/news/2010/December/10/pardew-confirmed-as-boss1.php