Ramblin', Gamblin' Man

I remember when Newcastle sacked Chris Hughton in favor of Alan Pardew. Everyone I knew thought it was an idiotic and borderline unfair move on Newcastle's part. Hughton was doing a good job. He was young, well liked by the players, and had gotten Newcastle back to the Premier League in one season. Pardew was a loser.(1) He had been sacked by Southamton who were in League One at the time. This is the rough equivalent of someone like Jim Tracy getting fired by the double A Akron Aeros. It is not be a stretch to say that Pardew was down on his luck. It was odd then that he decided to start hanging out at a casino. This is a true story. I kid you not.

Looking back, it might be the best move of his career. It was at the casino that he became friends with Newcastle director Derek Llambias. Allegedly. And then Llambias fired Hughton so he could hire his gambling buddy. Allegedly. It was a true David Stern level backstabbing, and you had to feel bad for Hughton, but its hard to say it hasn't worked out. Newcastle stayed up and Pardew made several nice signings over the summer (Demba Ba and Yohan Cabaye). On the field, they've been terrific this year and have been a lot of fun to watch up to this point.

And then they shellacked United. Manchester United. 3-0. As Michael Cox points out in his match review, Newcastle's victory was due in large part to tactical choices that Pardew had made. He basically took a gamble by pressing ManU's defense and midfield with high up the pitch. It worked. Newcastle suffocated United and won an emphatic victory.

Even with all of the positives, Newcastle's continued success is not a sure thing. Demba Ba and Cheik Tiote are both competing in the African Nation's Cup and the injuries are starting to pile up. The club is almost certain to stay up, but its not clear how much past that is realistic. A bit of luck and good fortune will likely be needed. Would you bet against Alan Pardew right now? I wouldn't. The man is on a heater, and it bodes well for Newcastle's finish to the season.

Newcastle has always been a club with an over-sized sense of importance. They have strong support, but rarely win anything. (2) Its the lack of results that make all the high-minded stuff about being a "big club" so off putting. Suffice to say, I wasn't the least bit sad to see them go down. Things are different now though. Pardew has them playing an attractive style, beating the world, beating United... Its hard not to be on board.

(1) He was probably best known for his very public spat with West Ham ownership over the transfer of both Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tevez. He was against them being brought in. He might have been wrong about that. Tevez later more or less proved that point by going on a tear and pretty much single handedly saving West Ham from the drop. Nice one, Alan.

(2) Their last victory in a major competition was the 1955 FA Cup.