• Premier League

Pardew: Newcastle must stand and deliver

Speculation surrounding Alan Pardew's position intensified after Newcastle's 4-0 defeat to Southampton © Getty Images

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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.

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.

Going it alone

Fans have already made their feelings about the Newcastle manager clear © Getty Images

• It's hardly a good sign when a club's assistant manager is rowing with fans even before the team manages to humiliatingly lose 4-0 at Southampton. John Carver, a proud Geordie usually seen as a fan on the coaching staff, was defending Alan Pardew, but the Newcastle manager is fast running out of admirers.
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Yet, with thousands of supporters believed to be preparing to call for his removal this weekend and a website set up to promote the fan's protest plans, Pardew knows he needs to try and win the club's supporters back quickly.

"This is a time to stand up and deliver, really," Pardew said. "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.

"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 okay start because we've had some tough games. 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 without a win and propping up the Premier League table after four matches.

"We have spoken about how important making a good start in a game is and we have been giving away too many early goals," Pardew 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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