John Carver concedes that Alan Pardew has a head start on Wednesday night when Newcastle United visit Selhurst Park. After leaving St James’ Park to manage Crystal Palace only six weeks ago there is little Pardew does not know about his former players – or his former assistant.
“Alan does have a bit of an advantage,” said Carver who has stepped up from the No2 role to become Newcastle’s interim head coach. “Both him and Ben Stevens, the Palace analyst who used to be here working with him, know us inside out.”
Not that Carver is incapable of second-guessing his adversary. “I think I know Alan inside out,” said Carver, who is not surprised by Pardew’s excellent start at Palace. “I know how he thinks.
“Alan will have a surprise up his sleeve, there’ll be something out of the ordinary that he’ll throw in during the game. It could be a set play, it could be something else but he’ll do it because he’s a bit like that.
“In the four or five games I’ve seen Palace in I can definitely see his stamp being put on the team. They’ve got a good team, they’ve got a good group of players and because he’s a good coach he’s getting the best out of them.”
There are those who had expected Carver to be reunited with Pardew in the Selhurst Park dugout by now but the 50-year-old is determined to see off competition from Steve McClaren and other names on Newcastle’s shortlist in order to secure the St James’ Park post on a longer term basis this summer. “There’s no reason for me to go to Crystal Palace,” he said. “Unless I lose my job here.”
Carver has been bolstered by the decision of Andy Woodman, his goalkeeping coach, to stay put on Tyneside rather than follow Pardew, a former Palace team-mate, to Selhurst Park. “I’m delighted Woody’s still here,” he said. “As well as being a good goalkeeper coach he’s got a fantastic personality and in this job you need people to pick you up sometimes. I was a little bit low when I come in this morning but five minutes with him changes that.”
