Premiership place has to be our goal
A YEAR ago Alan Pardew took over a club in turmoil.
Taking on the manager's job at Charlton on Christmas Eve, his side were rooted to the bottom of the division and facing relegation.
After racking up 18 points from Christmas to April the chances of staying up looked good, before a disappointing four points from their last seven matches condemned them to the Championship.
The club then lost star men Darren Bent, Luke Young and Scott Carson, but the Addicks faithful were still confident Pardew was the right man.
Twelve months on, the boss has had a clear-out and brought in a new set of players he hopes will bring the Addicks back into the top flight.
While promotion is far from certain just yet, Pardew says he has enjoyed a very challenging time at The Valley.
"This time last year we were fighting relegation and this year we are trying to achieve promotion - it's a very different mandate and it takes a very different look to your team," Pardew told The Wharf.
"It's difficult to turn a relegation team into a promotion one. I tried it at West Ham and fell at the very last hurdle in the play-off final and I'm trying to go one better this year. But it's difficult.
"We are changing the mentality of the players from the sort of season and the mode of not having to win something, which we are really trying to do this year.
"We're trying to install quickly that mentality into a new group of players as well as the players I kept from last year."
Pardew's challenge for this season was undoubtedly to get the side back in the top flight.
Since relegation, the Addicks boss has had to focus on helping the club, which had suffered from a difficult and uncertain period under the Iain
Dowie and Les Reed eras, to become stable again.
The Valley was not a happy place but now Pardew believes he has the foundations for success and the Premier League is the next step.
"My view of the club is that we've taken it forward in terms of being stable again, after a bit of turmoil," he said.
"The training ground, the facilities and the way we've conducted the management structure here - it is a much sounder base now and hopefully we've got something to build on.
"But ultimately, to have rapid success in football at the moment we have to be in the Premier League and that's where we aim to go.
"I've enjoyed my time here. I've enjoyed the relationship with the chairman in particular and the board has been very supportive.
"Obviously my relationship with the fans has remained strong as well and that's good for me
PARDEW'S CHARLTON RECORD
League and cup matches: won 18, lost 17, drawn 13. Goals for 63, Goals against 65
Signings: Madjid Bougherra, Martin Christensen, Chris Dickson, Chris Iwelumo, Patrick McCarthy, Izale McLeod, Yassin Moutaouakil, Chris Powell, Therry Racon, Jose Semedo, Dean Sinclair, Ben Thatcher, Svetoslav Todorov, Luke Varney, Nicky Weaver, Zheng Zhi
On loan: Danny Mills, Sam Sodje
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