The Merry-Go-Round

Well, off we go then. 'Tis clearly the season, as any chairman with half a brain (obviously this excludes the likes of those who run Newcastle) will make the change before the transfer window opens, not just after it closes. Pardew, from what I can gather, can feel let down by some of his players, but you can't say he's handled the Argentinians particularly well. In the last game Tevez was on the wing and Mascherano on the bench watching Christian Dailly play the defensive midfield role.

I don't want to large it with the old "I told you so", even though I did kind of tell you so, but let's just clarify what I meant. I didn't mean that Pardew sucked and was going to be found out ; not at all. He did a great job last season and he conducts himself very well. I just meant that it was a bit hopeful to give the guy a five-year contract two months into his first season in the Premiership. In two or three seasons West Ham would be odds on to have a sackworthy run of results somewhere along the way, never mind five. To be fair the people who gave him the contract stuck with him earlier this season - I think at just about any other club, the Chesterfield result would have been the last straw. The biscuit men, however, believe that relegation would be a crippling blow, and have done the necessary. I personally don't think that relegation is necessarily disastrous now, given the parachute payments and the huge advantage they give relegated teams over serial Championship plodders. Anyway, back to the now, and Curbs looks like a shoe-in (or is it shoo-in) for the job, as it's clearly the one he's been waiting for.

I wouldn't be at all surprised to see Pardew pitch up at Charlton the way they're going. Is it more like Musical Chairs than a merry-go-round ? Meanwhile Iain Dowie is talking to Hull City. There was a vox pop comment on BBC Sport (it's gone now and nuts to looking through forums for it) to the effect that Dowie wasn't the man for Hull and that they needed someone, I can't remember the word damn this hangover, with an "outstanding" or "excellent" record in the Championship. If you don't think taking Palace from the relegation zone to promotion in half a season is any good, then I'm sorry, you're going to be disappointed with whoever takes over at Hull City !