Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew aims dig at Newcastle while opening up about England job

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Pardew never quite won over the famously passionate Geordies, and says he would have had few second thoughts about leaving.

Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew has told The Guardian that he would consider jumping ship to take up the England job if he was still in charge of former club Newcastle.

Pardew endured a strained relationship with the St. James’ Park faithful towards the end of a mixed reign in charge, a remarkable fifth-place finish in 2011-12 undermined by a number of bottom-half finishes in the preceding years.

Consequently, there appeared little love lost between the fans and the manager when the 55-year-old returned to Palace, where he spent much of his playing career, in January 2015.

Pardew has since led The Eagles to an FA Cup final last season, where they lost to Manchester United courtesy of a late Jesse Lingard goal, before aiming to improve on last season’s collapse by spending big on the likes of James Tomkins and Christian Benteke (below).

Consequently, his strong relationship with chairman Steve Parish and the infrastructure and financial support provided by the club’s new American owners have convinced the former Southampton boss that he should remain at Selhurst Park for the foreseeable future regardless of links with the currently vacant England role.

However, Pardew admits it would be a different story if he was still dividing opinion from his Tyneside dugout.

“When people ask me about England … well, if I was still at Newcastle, I’d be pretty keen on that England job,” the 2012 LMA Manager of the Year revealed to The Guardian.

“But, with all this here, I’m left thinking: ‘Why would I really want to leave this club now?’

“Success can be a legacy. Maybe I can create one here so that, one day, people look back and say: ‘When Pardew was there that was a great period for the club.’”

The divisive Londoner also backed interim boss Gareth Southgate to take the England job full-time, suggesting he is the right man to instil stability after a nightmare 2016.