Sam Allardyce has left his post as Crystal Palace manager.
Crystal Palace’s Andros Townsend
Crystal Palace have confirmed that manager Sam Allardyce has left the club having handed in his resignation – and winger Andros Townsend appears stunned by the news.
Allardyce was in the football wilderness following his acrimonious exit from the England job in September, yet having saved Sunderland from relegation last season, it wasn’t long before he was back in the Premier League.
Crystal Palace chose to move on from Alan Pardew in December, and handed the job to Allardyce, with the remit of keeping the club in the top flight – and he did just that, with shock wins over Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool aiding their bid for survival.
Many expected Allardyce to make new signings and improve Palace this summer, but instead he has not only decided to leave his post at Selhurst Park, but also claim that he has no interest in returning to football in the immediate future.
Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez celebrates with Andros Townsend
That leaves Palace searching for a replacement, and the news appears to have come as a huge shock to Eagles winger Andros Townsend, who took to Twitter shortly after Allardyce’s departure was announced.
Townsend sent a one-word message to fans simply saying ‘Wow’ as ‘Big Sam’ leaves South London, and the tweet was hijacked by Newcastle United fans.
Townsend hit four goals and two assists in 13 Premier League games for Newcastle having joined the Magpies from Tottenham Hotspur in January 2016, but moved on last summer to join Palace.
In January, Newcastle attempted to re-sign Townsend (Sky Sports), and Magpies fans took the chance to urge Townsend to make the move back to Tyneside this summer, after Newcastle won promotion back to the Premier League.
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