Football can be a cruel game sometimes. Even when its someone as commonly disliked as Alan Pardew, seeing a person fired from their job is an unpleasant sight. When you add to that the joy around this time of year, it leaves a particularly bitter taste.
Pardew’s awkward thumbs up to Steve Parish is hardly out of our short-term memory, but the Dad-dancing manager is out of a job just in time for Christmas. Festive spirits evidently aren’t ringing around Selhurst Park at the moment – which is hardly surprising after their appalling 2016 – and Pardew has paid the price. Maybe the toughest time of year to lose a job, the timing of the decision is that of a side who are ready to hire someone else immediately.
Sam Allardyce will likely be that man. He has lurked around the relegation battle this season as the potential joker in the pack, ready to jump in when any of the current managerial incumbents lose their way. A fire fighter by nature, Allardyce is made for this situation, it is what his career has been based on. His heroics at Sunderland, despite the infamous England departure, live large in the memory of Premier League boards, which is why he remains the leading candidate for any available job.
The appointment of Allardyce would make sense on his track record alone. For Palace, though, it is a show of where they have fallen to in 2016. From a side who looked certain of Premier League safety long-term, they are now fighting for their lives as we head into 2017. While Pardew’s sides have always suffered great bouts of poor form, appointing Allardyce is putting a lid on ambitions. A short-term, needs-must appointment, perhaps.
The peaks and troughs of Pardew’s sides are a natural characteristic and it has been his ability to ride out such spells that has defined his career. Oddly for Palace, however, his string of defeats previously came to an end and there looked to be an upturn in performances. But narrow defeats to Manchester United and Chelsea were unsurprising and the performances themselves were a stark improvement on where they were throughout October and November. Still not reaching the levels that they perhaps could do, Pardew seemed to be turning things around and Allardyce must now find a way to accelerate that process.
The match against Swansea in the New Year is the highlight of the upcoming fixtures. Any points from games with Arsenal and Watford will be considered a bonus, and the Eagles are likely to be in the bottom three by the time they face the struggling Swans.
Allardyce’s appointment was an inevitability this season, it was just a question of which club opted for him first. The embarrassing revelations that led to his removal as England manager clearly do not bother the south London, either. Pardew’s stature had been diminished, but the timing of his sacking is as curious as anything. While Allardyce may keep the Eagles safe this season, Pardew was more likely to build a team to compete higher up the table next season.
But at some point, you start to think about survival. And this Christmas, it’s safety first for the Eagles.
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