Alan Pardew and the high price of finishing fifth

Alan Pardew

Many experts at the start of the 2011-12 season had Newcastle United down for a struggle, some had even down the club heading for Championship. The club though finished fifth that season despite all the odds and qualified for the UEFA Europa League and only narrowly missed out on the Champions League. Pardew personally was awarded for his achievements with him being given Premier League Manager of the season and LMA Manager of the Season.

It was generally on the back of it that Pardew was given an unprecedented eight year contract in September 2012. That contract was on the back of original five and a half year deal that he signed when he replaced Chris Hughton in December 2011.

It has all gone downhill for the Magpies since then with one bitter pill after another to swallow for the fans. The latest being the third consecutive defeat to the arch rivals Sunderland which is the first time that this has happened since 1923. This also means that the Geordies would not have seen a derby victory for over three years at best as things stand.

Even though Pardew’s record as a manager in the domestic cups was poor before he signed the seemingly timeless deal it has surprisingly gotten worse. In the FA cup the club have been knocked out by Brighton and Hove Albion and Cardiff City, two sides that you would think a club like Newcastle should be brushing aside. In the League cup the club has been knocked out by both Manchester clubs, although a bit easy to accept and swallow the carelessness displayed in team selection did not give any impression that the club that was desperate to win the match.

Last season was the one where the famous club from the north-east would both relish and cherish, but it turned out to be anything but that after a half decent start the club was mired in a relegation battle the dark shadow of which was only gotten rid of with a victory over Queens Park Rangers on the penultimate weekend of the season.

There were many other lows during the season; in fact  not soon after the joy of signing the contract had subsided the club went the whole month of November 2012 winless with one draw and four defeats. It was a constant struggle for the club on the pitch with some below par performances.

As if it couldn’t get any worse during the latter part of the season the club lost last three of their home matches conceding 10 goals and failing to score any. That run of defeats included Magpies being beaten 6-0 at home by Liverpool which was club’s worst home defeat in the top flight since September 1925 when they lost 7-1 against Blackburn Rovers.

In addition there have been occasions where the fans have had to watch performances which are just not up to the Premier League standards. The 2-1 home defeat to Reading is just one of those occasions. Other being the constant deriding of Europa League, the prize for finishing fifth, this should have been seen as an exciting challenge discarded as an unwanted distraction. This season the club had a drab 0-0 draw at home against a hapless West Ham United side in which they failed to get a single shot on target.

Pardew could argue that he has been given the short straw in terms of the numbers of players but it is without doubt the best assortment of players that the club have had since the heady days under the late great Sir Bobby Robson.

Whether Alan Pardew deserved a contract that the likes of Sir Alex Ferguson, Arsene Wenger or Jose Mourinho have failed to land in their glittering careers is a matter up for debate. But looking back you can certainly argue that for the one positive of finishing fifth there has been a lot of negative uninspiring football that has been dished up. And in my opinion the price of finishing fifth that the fans have had to pay has been too high, almost astronomically so.  Others may differ.