So Zabeel have called off the proposed deal to purchase Charlton Athletic.I’m not really surprised, after all why us? They’ve been very polite about it, as you’d expect saying:

“Zabeel Investments has the highest regard for both the supporters of Charlton and the way in which Charlton is managed, and wishes the team every success in its quest for promotion this season and moving forward.”

So where does that leave us? In deep trouble I’d say.

Let me be quite clear on one point. I want Alan Pardew out of the club. After yet another poor performance on Tuesday night out he comes with the usual comment of having to make one or two changes. See my earlier post for my thoughts on that, and it’s not just me – the trend has been spotted elsewhere. If Pardew remains in charge I cannot see things improving. It’s clear to me that he doesn’t know his best squad, he asks for some consistency form his players but shows none himself, he perseveres with some players who are obviously struggling yet dumps others out at the first mistake.

Of course, this begs the question of who would I replace him with. Well, given the dire straits the club is now in, I’d suggest we go back to basics and look at what we’ve got within the club. Parkinson has some experience as a manager and could possibly do a job. Mark Kinsella has been successful with the reserves and knows the squad well. We could, of course, look outside and see who’s available, but the names of Allardyce, Billy Davies and Alan Curbishley don’t fill me with excitement. I doubt Big Sam or Curbs would want the job, and Davies seems to be a little unstable – but anything has got to be better than Pardew. Two wins out of the last nine games is just not good enough. Four wins all season. Extrapolate that over the season means around 38 points. Colchester United finished bottom of the league last season with, yep 38 points.

From what I’ve seen this season, as demonstrated in the first 20 minutes against Bristol City, this team is capable of so much more. We need more from the manager than just standing motionless on the touchline as all shape and spirit drains out of the team.

We need a change.