GIVE US A FARE SHAKE
Embattled Baggies boss is desperate for fresh start after Barcelona taxi shame
ALAN PARDEW preached forgiveness for West Brom’s ‘Cab Four’ by reinstating Jonny Evans as captain and telling him: Prove you’re the man to lead us out of trouble.
Evans, Gareth Barry, Jake Livermore and Boaz Myhill have been fined a maximum two weeks’ wages each – totalling almost £500,000 – for allegedly stealing a taxi after breaking a late-night curfew on a club trip to Barcelona last week.
Baggies manager Pardew, revealing an evangelical side to his nature, confirmed the shamed quartet had been disciplined and said: “God teaches us to forgive.”
But he admitted rock-bottom Albion, seven points adrift on the Premier League seabed, will only be absolved by the fans if they pull off an unlikely escape from the drop.
And he called on £70,000-a-week Evans (with Barry, above) to lead the club out of trouble, starting with tomorrow’s must-win home game with fellow strugglers Huddersfield.
Evans was stripped of the armband for last week’s 2-1 home defeat by Southampton in the FA Cup, with Pardew insisting he had to “make a statement” about their behaviour in Barcelona (last Saturday’s back page, right).
He said: “The most important thing, from Jonny’s perspective, was his performance last Saturday. That was a very difficult game for him and Barry. He showed real character to come through that, and so he should.
“This weekend, he needs to prove to me, the fans and the club, that he’s the right man to lead us out of this.
“Trust me, he’s paid a heavy price. But it’s like all things in life – if you make a mistake, does that mean you have to spend the rest of your life paying for it? I don’t think so.
“God teaches us to forgive – on this occasion, I wouldn’t say Jonny has been forgiven, but he’s paid a price and he’s still paying a price with you guys (in the media).
“Trust me, the four guys have apologised more than enough. They really have. And in the right way as well – to me, the club, the staff – and now it’s about us showing some kind of backing to them.” Barry was jeered off after a poor display against the Saints, but Pardew said: “Hopefully, he will be cheered off this week because we know it’s going to be another difficult week for us if we don’t win.
“No one wants to play and work like this. We want to come into work with a smile and have a buzz about us. Nothing’s over until it’s over – the fat lady isn’t in the room yet.
“This has been one of my toughest weeks as a manager. It hurts me that it’s hurt so many people, and we ain’t really got a defence for it until we win, but the disciplinary side of it is finished as far as I’m concerned.
“Of course I’m angry about the situation and it’s tempered with a results business – and we need to get results. That incident magnified our situation and the only way we can get ourselves out of that spotlight is to win games. We need to win for ourselves, for our fans, for our pride, and show honour and courage in our performance.
“I sense the fans are as disappointed as I am. I don’t expect that stadium to be anything other than positive when we walk out and we need to repay that faith.
“I’m looking at my players to show they have the nous, the technical ability and the desire to win. We’ve had time to face the issue, and deal with it as best we can, but it will never go away.
“We only have three scenarios in front of us – either we perform the great escape, we go down with a fight and dignity, or we go down with a whimper, and I certainly hope it’s not the last one.
“I don’t want sympathy. The club was on a difficult run before I arrived and it hasn’t improved much since I’ve been here. That’s one failing at my door and I want to put that right.
“But I won’t let this one crazy incident take away from the professionalism and determination we have shown to try and correct results.”