Football
Kevin Palmer 10y

Alan Pardew: Despite protests, Newcastle must 'stand up and deliver'

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew says the time has come for his team to "stand up and deliver" amid suggestions that an organised protest against his continued stay at the club will be staged at Saturday's home game against Hull.

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Pardew has come under increasing pressure following his side's 4-0 defeat against his former club Southampton last Saturday, but club owner Mike Ashley has vowed to stand by his beleaguered manager for now.

Yet with thousands of supporters believed to be preparing to call for his removal this weekend and a website set up to promote the supporters protest plans, the Londoner knows he needs to try and win the club's supporters back quickly.

"This is a time to stand up and deliver, really," said Pardew, who is the second longest serving manager at a Premier League club behind Arsenal's Arsene Wenger. "Saturday is an important game for us because we've had a difficult start.

"The Southampton defeat was a tough day to take. As a group and individually, we're better than that, and I take responsibility for that.

"It was a heavy defeat when we were looking for so much more. It was a tough day for our fans, a tough day for the team and, certainly, a tough day for me.

"Even if we'd got a point [at Southampton] it would have been an OK start because I think we've had some tough games, but now we have a game at home where the pressure is really going to be on us. We have to deliver."

Pardew is trying to find some positives in a difficult start to the season that sees his revamped Newcastle side propping up the table after four matches and still looking for their first Premier League win, but he clearly appreciates the time has come to find a winning formula.

"We have spoken about how important making a good start in a game is and we have been giving away too many early goals," he added. "The worry is how many goals are we going to score. We're aware of that. We need to find a formula which will get us some goals."

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