Speaking to the BBC, former Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew has gone on to slam Magpies’ owner Mike Ashley.
Pardew managed Newcastle United from 2010 to 2014 and it would be apt to state that the 55-year-old endured a tumultuous time at St. James’ Park.
Although Pardew did guide Newcastle to a fine 5th place finish in the Premier League during the 2011/12 season, he endured some very difficult campaigns in the following years and eventually became public enemy number one among the Magpies’ faithful.
Some have sympathized with Pardew’s struggles at Newcastle by pointing out the fact that his hands were tied under the rigid ownership of Mike Ashley and now the Crystal Palace manager has himself gone on to slam his former boss.
In an interview with the BBC, Pardew has revealed that he never had complete control over the players Newcastle bought during his time at the club and has stated that he was left very frustrated working under the billionaire owner of the Magpies.
He said, “I kept nagging [Ashley], kept telling him I thought the process was wrong. I made that very clear behind closed doors.
“At times I had a very unbalanced team, very unbalanced squad. It’s very difficult to pick up results when you don’t think the players that are being signed for you fit what you want.
“That makes it frustrating a little bit, and I was a bit frustrated at Newcastle. The financial element came first, then the technical side of it. But the vision of the manager and how he wants to take the team forward, that must come first.
“I like to think they’ve learned some lessons. I think Mike, at Sports Direct, has learned some lessons – I think he’d be the first to say that – and he’s had to learn lessons on the football side.”
