Pardew a big hit in the top 10
ALAN PARDEW refl ected on his dream return to Palace after this victory secured 10th place.
Marouane Chamakh stabbed home the winner after combining with Scott Dann in the 58th minute to set a Premier League points record of 48 for the Eagles.
Pardew took over the club he once played for when they were stuck in the relegation zone in January.
“When I arrived the club was in a diffi cult position, but there was no shortage of quality or character and, my goodness, we have proved that,” he said.
“It’s remarkable really to fi nish 10th, I’d never have dreamt that when I arrived.
“It has been a great experience and we now need to kick on if we can. We’ll try to do that.”
Pardew hopes he will be asked to invest the extra money that top- 10 fi nish earns back into the squad and is targeting four fi rst- team players.
“The chairman has an extra four million now, so he’s happy. But I’ll be trying to take every penny off him,” he said. “We’re in a good position because we don’t need to speculate, we just need to buy some quality.”
Swansea manager Garry Monk revealed he is close to signing a new contract after overseeing a superb season, fi nishing a club- highest eighth in the top fl ight.
“I’m talking about a new contract and those negotiations are well under way now,” said Monk.
“I’m very focused on Swansea and the transition I’ve done this season hasn’t fi nished. I want to put my stamp on the club.
“I’m more than sure that we’ll be able to sort out a contract over the next few days.”
He also said that defender Neil Taylor is close to agreeing fresh terms.
“We’ve had good initial talks and hopefully it can happen sooner rather than later,” said Monk.