The former Magpies midfielder believes that without their former manager, Newcastle’s season may have had a different conclusion.
Newcastle United were lucky to have Alan Pardew in charge, Jermaine Jenas has claimed on BBC’s Match of the Day.
Pardew endured a rocky time as United manager before leaving to become boss at former club Crystal Palace earlier this season, following the sacking of Neil Warnock.
The London side have been highly impressive since Pardew took over, with their latest triumph a 4-1 thrashing of Sunderland on Saturday afternoon.
In contrast, Newcastle have struggled under caretaker manager John Carver and are seemingly drifting to the end of the season.
Now, Jenas has claimed Newcastle were lucky to have Pardew in charge otherwise their situation may be more dire than it is.
“Newcastle should count themselves lucky to have had him there earlier in the season, it could have been a different scenario,” said Jenas.
The former midfielder has also praised the job undertaken by the former Newcastle boss since taking charge of the Eagles.
Palace were in danger of relegation having failed to impress under Warnock, but now sit 11th in the Premier League table, well clear of any relegation troubles and with the potential of a top ten finish.
That form has led to some calls for Pardew to be named Manager of the Season, and Jenas believes he has been terrific for both clubs during this campaign.
“I think it’s phenomenal what he’s done at both clubs,” he added.
“He’s been absolutely brilliant for them [Palace], there’s talk of him being Manager of the Season.”
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