Pardiola? No way, Jose.
The Premier League was lucky enough to welcome Alan Pardew back when West Brom appointed him having sacked Tony Pulis, seemingly unaware of how that ended for Crystal Palace.
But nevertheless, what cannot be argued is his commitment to providing entertainment. That entertainment comes in many forms: embarrassing dances, cringeworthy self-aggrandising comments, but rarely from his players on the pitch.
After his side’s 2-1 defeat to Man United today, Pardew jumped to the defence of United manager José Mourinho who has come under criticism since last weekend’s Manchester derby at Old Trafford, which City won 2-1.
“Jose and myself would love to win a game 4-0 playing flamboyant football,” he said.
“You can’t do that, you just have to find a way to win sometimes. That’s the thing he does better than anyone else, including Pep. He wins more trophies.”
“It’s about personnel and having the right criteria. I am of the opinion there’s beauty in the game at both ends of the pitch.”
Pardew is not technically wrong, Mourinho has won four more major trophies in seven more years as a manager than Guardiola, who can only boast a measly 21 trophies at the age of 46 in a ten year managerial career.
The Baggies boss reminds us of when he tried to implement a “new style”, based on possession, at Crystal Palace. Pardew discovered that it was not as easy as he thought, ignored the need for defensive solidity that he speaks so passionately about now and he was eventually sacked due to his failure to keep Palace defensively solid.
It’s not surprising of a coach who tried and failed to coach a team to play a “flamboyant” style, when he seemed unable to use the wisdom he is dishing out now, to belittle the achievements of a coach who has dominated European football with his teams playing in that way.
There is one quality Pardew and Mourinho have always shared though: having an excuse ready at all times. Whether that’s blaming the negative fans, the weather of the timing of Notting Hill Carnival.
Get used to it, Baggies fans, this is just the start.
