Sam Allardyce: Crystal Palace manager resigns after five months in charge
Sam Allardyce has resigned as Crystal Palace manager five months after he joined the Premier League club.
Allardyce
replaced Alan Pardew in December on a two-and-half-year deal with the Eagles
one point above the relegation zone.
The
62-year-old, who had an ill-fated one-game spell as England
boss, led the club
to eight wins in 21 games to guide them to a 14th-place finish.
"I have
no ambitions to take another job," Allardyce said in a statement.
"I want
to be able to savour life while I am still relatively young, and when I am
still relatively healthy enough to do all the things I want to do, like travel,
spend more time with my family and grandchildren without the huge pressure that
comes with being a football manager.
"This is
the right time for me. I simply want to be able to enjoy all the things you
cannot really enjoy with the 24/7 demands of managing any football club, let
alone one in the Premier League."
Allardyce's topsy-turvy year
Allardyce completes his work
Allardyce
revealed his decision to chairman Steve Parish at a meeting in London on
Tuesday. The Eagles are now looking for their eighth manager in seven years.
Although it
took Allardyce six games to get his first victory - with BBC Sport asking if
the 'Big Sam bounce had
deserted Palace' -
the former Bolton, Blackburn, Newcastle and West Ham boss maintained his record
of never being relegated from the Premier League.
Only Sir Alex
Ferguson, Arsene Wenger, Harry Redknapp and David Moyes have managed more games
in the Premier League.
Allardyce's
final game in charge of Palace came on Sunday, a 2-0 loss at Manchester
United, having
guaranteed safety the previous week by thrashing Hull 4-0.
Following
defeat at Old Trafford, Allardyce indicated his plans to improve the squad in
the summer.
He had told
BBC Sport: "We now need to grow, develop and invest. You need to choose
the right players and not the wrong ones. Recruitment is the difficult task in
the summer."
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