Alan Pardew believes he was judged harshly during his time at Newcastle United as he was viewed as 'Mike's employee' by supporters.
Pardew was handed the reins at St James' Park in December 2010 following the Magpies unpopular decision to sack Chris Hughton.
The former Southampton and West Ham United boss remains the only manager to have guided Newcastle to European football during the Mike Ashley era, securing an unlikely fifth-placed finish in the 2011/12 campaign.
However, an impressive run to the Europa League quarter-finals was marred by a relegation battle, and Pardew's future in the hotseat was regularly called into question by disgruntled supporters during the rest of his tenure.
The Magpies boss brought an eventful four-year stint to a close in December 2014, leaving his post at St James' Park to become Neil Warnock's replacement at Crystal Palace.
Reflecting upon his time on Tyneside in an interview with FourFourTwo, Pardew reckons his relationship with supporters was heavily damaged by his association with the unpopular owner.
The 58-year-old also dismissed the rumours of a casino meeting with Ashley ahead of his appointment at St James' Park.
Pardew said: “It was one of those things where, if you deny it, you make it worse.
“I’d never met him in a casino – that was total nonsense – but it doesn’t matter with the internet these days. It’s ridiculous. People say all sorts of things about you – you just have to get on with it.
“It was tough at times, though. There was a lot of anti-feeling towards Mike and then me, as Mike’s employee.
"I felt I did a really good job there in trying circumstances, but I couldn’t get away from the criticism.”
