Crystal Palace hires Alan Pardew as manager

Crystal Palace's incoming manager Alan Pardew arrives in the stands to watch his team's English Premier League soccer match against Aston Villa at Villa Park in Birmingham, January 1, 2015. [Photo/Agencies]

LONDON - Alan Pardew was appointed manager of Crystal Palace on Saturday after swapping mid-table Newcastle for a team fighting against Premier League relegation.

Palace says Pardew signed a three-year contract to manage the club he played for from 1987 to 1991, filling the void left by Neil Warnock's firing last Saturday.

"I am absolutely delighted to be the new manager of Crystal Palace," Pardew said in a statement on the club's website. "Everyone knows my history here, what's important now is to move the club to the next level."

Pardew had been at Newcastle since 2010 and Palace had to buy him out of a contract that ran until 2020.

Pardew often endured abuse from fans at the north-east club as he coped with limited financial resources under Mike Ashley's ownership. He should receive a fonder reception at Palace, where he is remembered for scoring the goal that took the team to the 1991 FA Cup final, which Manchester United won.

Pardew will take charge of Sunday's FA Cup game against Dover. But his main task will be to improve the London club's form in the Premier League, where it sits in 18th place in the relegation zone midway through the season.

"We wanted a manager with a great track record and proven experience in the Barclays Premier League," Palace chairman Steve Parish said. "In Alan we have both these things as well as a man who has great affection for this club and shares my determination to take us to the next level."

Pardew was the second-longest serving manager in the Premier League behind Arsenal's Arsene Wenger, and led Newcastle to a fifth-place finish in 2012.

"He goes with our best wishes and thanks," Newcastle managing director Lee Charnley said.