Time up for Pardew?

When people say "Football is just a game," drives me to the edge of combustion. It most certainly is not, it is so much more. However, where Mike Ashley and Alan Pardew are concerned, Newcastle United appears just a game and a hobby to themwant both of them run in to the nd where they were only able to pick up 6 points from their last 10 games has carried on into the new campaign, with no signs of improving. Winless and only newly promoted Burnley below them in the table, things haven't been rosy for the northern club. 

If we remember back to when Mike Ashley awarded Pardew with a spanking new 8 year contract, it caught everyone off guard. Ashley's reasoning in his bizarre actions was that successful clubs are only built on long term management. The Newcastle faithful have been voicing their opinions for months now, and the poor form that has hit the Toon has given them ammunition and evidence.

It is safe to say that Pardew would not be the most popular around St James' Park and the route of this could be narrowed down to a poor transfer window in the summer. In a surprising move, Hatem Ben Arfa joined Hull City, something which wouldn't have pleased the fans. 

After the departure of Yohan Cabaye in January, Pardew signed Jack Colback from rivals Sunderland, so it was always going to be a point of concern. Last season, they had Loic Remy, on loan from QPR, to rely on for goals, and they attempted to make that deal permanent in the summer but to no avail. 

With Remy off to new pastures, Newcastle have struggled to find the net. Having netted 5 goals in 6 games, Papiss Cisse is their leading scorer with 2, but he has been less than impressive. In fairness to Alan Pardew, he tried to replace Remy's goals with AS Monaco's Emmanuel Rivière for a fee of €6m. Yet to open his account for the Tyneside club, Pardew will be hoping for his sake that the goal drought doesn't go on for much longer.

His other signings haven't set the world alight either. Siem de Jong showed great promise at Ajax, particularly during that Champions League match against Manchester City several seasons back. Currently injured, the Dutchman, along with Remy Cabella could give the Toon the creative spark that will give Cisse and Rivière chances to score. De Jong has the ability to be a big hit at St James' Park, hopefully injury doesn't hamper his development at the Tyneside club.

Even more of a concern for Newcastle fans is Pardew's tactics. He is very persistent with his 4-5-1 formation, something which has come under a lot of criticism from Toon fans. Rivière has often being playing as a lone striker and has looked uncomfortable in that position. His tactics have been deemed slightly negative, particularly as the manager seems reluctant to throw on an additional striker when they are in need of a goal. This was particularly evident during the game on Monday night when he replaced Rivière with Cisse. 

Pardew hasn't enjoyed a good 2014, and now with Mike Ashley jokingly saying that he will sack the manager, we can see that he is in a very awkward position. There is no doubt he is under pressure, particularly with managers such as David Moyes and Tony Pulis unemployed. Now with the manager appealing for the media to leave his family out of the equation, we could be seeing a departure very soon. I think your time is up, Mr Pardew.