It’s over Pardew’s turbulent reign ends following run of nine defeats
Former player Appleton high on list of candidates Moore set to lead club until end of campaign
Alan Pardew’s reign at West Bromwich Albion was finally ended yesterday as the Premier League strugglers began preparing for inevitable relegation.
Pardew’s turbulent four-month spell at the Hawthorns was ended by mutual consent, after extensive talks with chief executive Mark Jenkins over the previous 24 hours.
West Brom suffered their ninth successive defeat on Saturday against Burnley and have made their move as they ready themselves for a huge “reboot” in the Championship.
Michael Appleton, a former West Brom player and coach, is understood to be high on their list of potential replacements. There is also likely to be support for Nigel Pearson, Brentford’s Dean Smith and Derek Mcinnes of Aberdeen.
Pardew’s future has been in doubt for weeks and The Daily Telegraph can reveal that Albion were poised to sack him after the 2-1 home defeat by Huddersfield Town on Feb 24.
An approach was made for Marco Silva, the former Watford and Hull City manager, but it was rebuffed, effectively giving Pardew a stay of execution.
Results, performances and a toxic atmosphere at the training ground pressed Albion into action, with Pardew, 56, leaving after just 21 games in charge.
The appalling first-half performance against Burnley, and the number of empty seats at the Hawthorns, proved the final straw for the board. It is understood Pardew will leave with about £500,000 in compensation, due to the fact he had a break clause in the summer, where both parties could review the situation.
A club statement read: “West Bromwich Albion and Alan Pardew have agreed to mutually part company today following discussions between both parties.
“Assistant head coach John Carver will also be leaving. The club would like to thank Alan and John for their efforts and wish them well in their future endeavours.”
Darren Moore, the club’s former defender, is likely to take charge for the remainder of the season in a bid to inject pride back into the disastrous campaign.
Pardew is the second departure of the season at West Brom. He arrived in late November following the dismissal of Tony Pulis, his appointment coming due to the support of technical director Nick Hammond. Albion also interviewed Aitor Karanka, but Pardew’s experience of the Premier League made him the favourite. He also had a reputation for starting jobs well.
Yet it proved a woeful appointment, with February’s infamous training camp in Barcelona proving the nadir. Four senior players were fined for allegedly hijacking a taxi on a night out. It is understood the trip was viewed with huge scepticism by the squad and board members.
Pardew’s authority has also been undermined by constant friction between him and the players – that authority has recently come under scrutiny after high-profile incidents involving Grzegorz Krychowiak and Gareth Barry.
Krychowiak swore at Pardew after being substituted against
Leicester City, while Barry was pictured in a Birmingham nightclub on Friday evening.
There have been other incidents, including a bizarre moment when Pardew criticised winger Matt Phillips over his weight during a training session, resulting in a sense of bewilderment among the squad.
The decision to drop Jay Rodriguez for the game against struggling Southampton in February, after the £12 million striker had scored five goals in six starts, led to confusion.
Pardew’s treatment of senior players, including Chris Brunt and Gareth Mcauley, also bred resentment.