Alan Pardew claims he was 'too loyal' to the players who had kept Crystal Palace up
Alan Pardew believes that loyalty to certain players cost him his job at Crystal Palace.
The 55-year-old was sacked on December 22 with Palace placed 17th in the Premier League having won only one of their last 11 games.
Pardew had spent over £50million in the summer transfer window, much of it coming from the sale of Yannick Bolasie to Everton, to bring in the likes of Christian Benteke, Andros Townsend and James Tomkins but continued to lean on several of the squad that had initially got Palace into the Premier League.
“Looking back, I sat down with Steve in the summer and we decided we wanted to take the club forward,” he told the Times. “We made changes but I definitely have the view we didn’t change the squad enough.
“We brought players in but I think we should have done more. That was compounded when we thought we had good cover at left back, not thinking Pape Souare would be in a car crash. That was a big mistake not getting cover in one or two areas.
“Sometimes as manager you do get loyal to players. They kept us up, we got to the cup final. I couldn’t fault their attitude but we didn’t have a balanced team.
“The players I’ve had, I think I’ve largely got the maximum out of them but maybe you can’t keep going for maximum. Maybe my loyalty gets in the way a little bit. I have been loyal to a fault with some. That’s just a trait I have. Something I have to keep an eye on.”
Pardew went on to state his belief that he could have ensured Palace’s Premier League survival this season, a task now entrusted to Sam Allardyce.
The former England manager’s signings of Luka Milivojevic and Mamadou Sakho have helped to shore up the Eagles’ defence and Palace have won their last three to move four points clear of the relegation zone.
Pardew claims he was 'too loyal' to players who kept Palace upCrystal Palace FCAlan PardewSam AllardyceCrystal Palace news: Alan Pardew claims he was 'too loyal' to the players who had kept Crystal Palace upAlan Pardew's 2016 at Crystal Palace in pictures
Alan Pardew's 2016 at Crystal Palace in pictures
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Crystal Palace entered 2016 on a high, fifth in the Premier League and with new American owners ready to bankroll them.
But this year was an annus horribilis for Alan Pardew, despite a run to the FA Cup Final.
Standard Sport looks over the highs and lows of the year in this gallery.Christopher Lee/Getty Images
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2/14 January 3: Crystal Palace 0 Chelsea 3
2016 began in disappointing fashion for Palace, who were routed at home by a then-struggling Chelsea under temporary manager Guus Hiddink, Oscar, Willian and Diego Costa getting the goals.
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3/14 February 21: Tottenham 0 Crystal Palace 1
The FA Cup provided some respite as Palace lost six and drew one of their first seven, Martin Kelly sending the Eagles into the last eight with the only goal at White Hart Lane.
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4/14 March 6: Crystal Palace 1 Liverpool 2
Palace's woes continued to 12 league games as they threw away a lead against 10 men Liverpool, a contentious late penalty from Christian Benteke sending the Eagles within nine points of the drop.
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5/14 April 9: Crystal Palace 1 Norwich 0
A first league win of 2016 came thanks to Jason Puncheon and the result effectively secured Palace's place in the top flight.
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6/14 April 24: Crystal Palace 2 Watford 1
Yannick Bolasie and Connor Wickham struck in a superb display as Palace secured their first FA Cup Final appearance in 26 years.
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7/14 May 21: Crystal Palace 1 Manchester United 2
A first major trophy seemed to be Palace's with 10 minutes left of the FA Cup Final after Jason Puncheon struck for the Eagles but Juan Mata's equaliser and Jesse Lingard's extra time strike denied Pardew.
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8/14 August 13: Crystal Palace 0 West Brom 1
Palace's league woes continued into the new season as Salomon Rondon scored the only goal for West Brom.
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9/14 August 20: Christian Benteke signs
Palace smashed their transfer record with a £27million deal for Liverpool striker Benteke.
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10/14 September 18: Crystal Palace 4 Stoke 1
A best league performance of 2016 saw summer signing Andros Townsend net the fourth in an excellent win over a struggling Stoke side.
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11/14 September 24: Sunderland 2 Crystal Palace 3
A last-minute header from Benteke secured a comeback win for the Eagles, who rose to seventh after six games.
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12/14 November 26: Swansea 5 Crystal Palace 4
Fernando Llorente struck twice in injury time to inflict a sixth straight defeat on Palace and leave Pardew fearing for his job.
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13/14 December 3: Crystal Palace 3 Southampton 0
With Pardew under serious pressure, Christian Benteke scored either side of a James Tomkins effort to secure a much-needed win over Southampton.
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14/14 December 22: End of the road
Alan Pardew is sacked after just six Premier League wins all year and Palace 17th in the top flight.
Sam Allardyce would replace him.Getty Images