PREMIER LEAGUE Return of the Jedi

MILE CAN STAR

ALAN Pardew insists Mile Jedinak still has a Crystal Palace future after the club captain’s deadline-day switch to Stoke collapsed.

Pardew gave the green light for the Aussie midfielder to make a £3m move to the Britannia – only for the deal to break down over finances.

It means Jedinak, 31, will resume his battle to win back the starting spot he lost following the summer arrival of Yohan Cabaye.

And Eagles boss Pardew is content with that prospect ahead of tomorrow’s clash at home to league leaders Manchester City.

He said: “Mile is a massive character and player for this football club.

“There was a bid accepted by the board here out of respect. He’s a first-team player who’s not playing, so I think it’s only fair to him that we’re honest when bids come in, to give him the option.

“We gave him the option, but he’s here now to fight for his place. The decision was made by Mile to stay and we’re happy with that.”

Pardew has also thrown a lifeline to Dwight Gayle, who has moved up the pecking order following Glenn Murray’s £3m move to Bournemouth.

Gayle’s future looked bleak when Palace accepted an offer from Championship side Bristol City, but the striker rejected the switch.

Pardew said: “With Glenn leaving, it gives Dwight an opportunity and he is now in the process of trying to take that.

“Dwight’s very much a part of our family and hopefully we can give him more game time.

“The bid we accepted was before Glenn went, so we gave him the opportunity and another club was interested in him as well. But only one of them was going to go. I need a pool of strikers here and they need to fight it out.”