Legod Third Coming

God Almighty. The statement tells you that the management team are being relieved of their duties BECAUSE they are not expected to help the club meet its targets. Those targets are PROMOTION(S). That is it. End of. The rest it total conjecture and frankly cobblers put about by people on here. It's not a case of opinions or speculation. It's a case that some people felt a need to justify the decision so made some stories up. The Chairman felt no such need. He told you in a statement that he felt a change was needed to reach our targets.

"Following a review of the current status in and around the first team, the club has decided that, to achieve its well known targets, it is essential to make changes to the first team management and coaching. Ergo - a different management team are expected to do a better job of achieving promotion. "These targets for sustained and significant progress embrace both the first team and the football development and support centre as integrated, co-operative units. Ergo - a different management team will better suit this desire for integration and cooperation. "Consequently, the first team manager Alan Pardew, first team coach Wally Downes and goalkeeping coach Stuart Murdoch have been relieved of their duties with immediate effect. We wish them well for the future." Ergo - a different management team will do a better job.

He said that our objectives are better served with a different management team in charge - if that doesn't mean someone else can do a better job, what does? You are being deliberately obtuse and I see now way to continue to debate this with you as a result.

Yes you can. There is no evidence of gross misconduct. None. The reasons are provided more eloquently than me in the post above yours. We have changed our management team - not 'our manager'. We have made the decision to bring in a team who can better achieve our aims - ie. a team who will get better results. Jesus wept. Where is the evidence of gross misconduct? Nowhere. And why on earth would gross misconduct require the removal and replacement of the entire coaching team? So, given the statement of the club and a modicum of common sense, you can rule out anything but footballing reasons - those being that the Chairman believes someone else will do a better job. Which is precisely what he said publicly.

You can rule all of those out. And all that remains in your list is footballing reasons. The Chairman's perception that Pardew is not doing a good enough job. Simple.

We know Pardew was fired. That is beyond doubt. Beyond any doubt. That he was fired for football reasons is also beyond doubt by virtue of the club's statement at the time. All I am doing is explaining to you in the most simple terms possible (because they appear to be necessary) why Chairmen do not come out and say 'I sacked my manager'. What sort of statement were you expecting?

Please find me the statements from football clubs over the last ten years that differ from the one put out by Cortese and which anyone but the hard of thinking clearly recognise and understand.

In language that anyone who has followed football for more than 12 months would recognise in a heartbeat.

Mate, you're not reading what's there in black and white. Ok, so why didn't Cortese say "I sacked Alan and his staff because in my view we were underperforming"? Because: 1. He's not a c u n t. 2. It makes him look bad as he employed him. 3. Because he recognises that a lot of fans consider him to have been successful. 4. He respects Pardew and would like him to be gainfully employed elsewhere. 5. It removes any future opportunity for Pardew to sue for wrongful dismissal. Not being funny but this is schoolboy stuff.

What happened is Pardew was fired. Why? Cortese thought someone else could do a better job. This is not rocket science my friend.

Precisely. And that's fine. If it works out, and the evidence is encouraging if not compelling, noone will care. Cortese will be a football genuis - with apologies to Chris Marsden.

To 'achieve our targets' can mean nothing but this is a football decision. What other targets do we have? The first landing on Mars? Sailing the channel in a shell? Building a life-size replica of the Taj Mahal?

Cortese offered a footballing reason. IT is in his statement at the time. I said it shouldn't require 'another' justification. I think you missed the 'another'. He offered a justification. IT was a footballing one.

I'm pretty sure you're not serious but the choice was not Hoddle or Luggy. The choice was any number of available managers including at the time one Jose Mourinho who was looking for a move to a Premiership club...

What I find distasteful in all this is the lack of gratitude towards Pardew from some sections of our fanbase and the speed with which they will believe any internet bull sh i t rumour to compensate for the Chairman's decision and show him as some shining light. Sacking Pardew is not inexplicable, although the timing was appalling. Appointing Adkins may well be a masterstroke. It shouldn't require any other justification and I don't believe Cortese offered one. So noone else should be filling a void that doesn't exist. It was a footballing decision, end of.

To be fair to Cortese, no-one but Pardew and Cortese know what he said. But I'm pretty sure it was straight and to the point and all that's happened since is a negotiation. These things often take time. Cortese wants to pay as little as possible, Pardew wants as much as possible. When I had a long-term contract and wanted it paying up in full, I was also conscious I didn't want to be mowing my lawn forever...

Yes, but in reality if you made the decision, you resigned. If they made the decision, you're sacked. I resigned as a Director and then agreed a settlement and by signing a compromise agreement understood that my settlement would be far higher. Simple. In this case, Cortese decided that Pardew's tenure was over (call it whatever you like, it amounts to the same thing as sacking). They then agree a package and Pardew agrees what he's going to say. That's because Pardew knows the game. If he sticks two fingers up and holds out for his full contractual entitlement he can kiss goodbye to another job in football... But the idea of a mutual agreement is nonsense. I think I've seen one genuine case of people agreeing mutually to part in 20 years of working...

Not remotely wrong. So two people make a decision spontaneously to mutually separate do they? No, of course fecking not. Someone is asked to leave or someone leaves. THEN they agree what they are going to say about it. Boards do not appear to fire CEO's because it reflects badly on their choice. CEO's don't appear to resign because it reflects badly on a board and affects the share price (and the CEO probably has a load). Same with football managers. Cortese can't be seen to fire Pardew because HE employed him less than 12 months earlier. But be in no doubt, FIRED is what he was. The point is that one party is nearly always making the decision, that's just bleeding obvious.

The most likely scenario here is pretty simple... "Alan, things are not really working out here. You and I don't see eye to eye on style or our approach to the game. I want to thank you for everything you've done for us, but you know how it is." "Sure, Nicola, I've been in the game long enough. You'll look after me and the boys of course?" "Of course." Really, what the feck else is there??

Cobblers. Someone is either sacked or they resign. THEN they agree what they are going to say about it and sign a compromise agreement.

With all due respect my friend, I think I could manage Celtic... two teams in that league and Rangers were imploding financially. That said, he was great for us. Happy days.

There is no doubt we were a good side under Hoddle. He was a good manager for us, end of.

Stop pretending Pardew was a poor manager. THESE ARE THE FACTS: 2nd best scorers in the division with 85 goals 2nd best defence with 47 conceded Won 23 games Drew 14 games Lost 9 games From turning around a fecking supertanker of defeat and disaster. If Adkins has 80% of Pardew's record, chances are we will be promoted... I have every faith in Adkins but the vitriol expressed towards our previous manager and his style is bordering on David Irving standard!

Sure it looks great, apart from the fact it's actually supposed to be the Queen Mary...

Not quite but we beat a very very poor side on Saturday and this coming match is a much better test of our league credentials. We should win given our resources, undoubtedly. But we shouldn't get carried away with outpassing Tranmere bloody Rovers! What looks different to me than when Wilkins was in charge is that the players seem to know what they're doing/what they're being asked to do. There were times weeks ago when they were looking to/at each other as though they'd never seen a football before in their lives. MANAGERS make football clubs, make players win games.