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          Is Alan Pardew still Newcastle United manager? Keep track here ...

          • ESPN staffSep 30, 2014, 08:02 AM

          Want to know whether Alan Pardew is still managing Newcastle United? Or if he's no longer doing his happy dance? You can follow the day's latest on the swinging axe here and come back tomorrow to see whether anything has changed ...

          Nov. 10, 2014: YES, yes he is

          How things change. A month ago, we were asking if Pardew should go, now we're wondering if he should have a knighthood. Five games, five wins -- including rather impressive 1-0 and 2-0 wins over Liverpool and West Brom respectively.

          "You can imagine everyone was pulling at him [Mike Ashley], and he stuck with me, and was very supportive, especially after the Southampton game [0-4 in September]," Pardew said. "And you've got to have that as a manager, have that faith in you, in the work you're doing on the training ground, from the chief executive and from the staff."

          It's safe to say he's safe.

          Oct. 13, 2014: YES

          The heat is off Pardew for the time being as we trudge through this frankly inconvenient international break but one internet prankster as come up with Alan Pardew's Random Excuse Generator which is a funny way to pass the time during Bosnia vs. Belgium.

          Oct. 9, 2014: YES

          Hmmm, a spot of blame shifting here perhaps?

          "Our [recruitment] policy here has been the same since I've been at the club -- we have bought players we think have good market value and that means mainly the younger players," Alan Pardew told the Chronicle. "I've had to deal with younger players and some have been massively successful and some haven't. At the moment we are not having as much success as we've had.

          "We've produced some fantastic players for this club and we need to start producing a few more.

          "I didn't think we were strong enough in the last part of the season and that's been held against me that I've been making excuses, but I just felt that we needed more and we didn't have it after the loss of (Yohan) Cabaye...

          "Forget where we are in the league. We need big players and our big players need to stand up. We also need to create more big players and that's what we are trying to do."

          The Chronicle, meanwhile, have been going over the stats of teams who have four points from seven games and have some bad news to impart.

          "Thirteen of the clubs banking four points or fewer after seven games went on to go down - a whopping 62%," they write. "Eight stayed up but here is where it gets really interesting for United fans urging the club to learn from Premier League history.

          "Only TWO of the 21 who have started as badly as United this year have stayed up by sticking with their manager - and FIVE of the eight who stayed up took evasive action before the month of October and changed bosses to keep them up."

          Oct. 8, 2014: YES

          "We do not want him to get sacked, we want him here," Newcastle full-back Daryl Janmaat told the Daily Mirror. "He is good for us and we are fighting for him. I don't listen to what the fans are chanting, I focus on playing the game."

          Meanwhile, someone has created a rather good update (we'll take some of the credit) for Alan's job on Twitter:

          Oct. 7, 2014: YES.

          Pardew may have the worst record in the Premier League for this calendar year, but the chances of him not being the first managerial change of this season may have been boosted by Harry Redknapp's situation at Queens Park Rangers.

          Redknapp's side are currently bottom of the table with just one win from seven games, and the veteran manager has revealed he has rejected a new contract and will probably not stay if QPR go down, telling The Sun: "If we get relegated I wouldn't expect to stay and I wouldn't want to. I told [club owner Tony Fernandes] that I get on so well with him and know him so well I don't want a contract. I don't need one. If I'd wanted to sign the contract I could've done a long time ago. So we'll see where we are come next May won't we? I may have had enough by then and so might the people that run the club."

          Given that statement, Fernandes may decide that a change of manager sooner rather than later would most benefit the club.

          Oct. 6, 2014: YES.

          Former Newcastle director of football Dennis Wise believes that one reason Pardew has never been fully accepted on Tyneside is because he, like Wise and club owner Mike Ashley, is from London.

          Referring to the name given to the members of the club's previous management structure, Wise told beIN Sport: "We were the Cockney Mafia. It was like 'OK no problem'. Once you get past Watford Gap there's a problem."

          Oct. 5, 2014: YES.

          Newcastle's next game is at home to Leicester on Oct. 18, so Alan will likely get a bit of a break from everything. Time to reflect. Time to make his side better. Or, maybe not:

          "We know that the tension in the stands and in the stadium is not going to go away in the short-term," he said. "But what we must focus on is performance and I think we've got a bit to lean on.

          "I don't think I'll ever get a boring fortnight. But what I would say is that I've had lots of messages of support from within the game and I would like to publicly thank people for them."

          Meanwhile, that pressure in the stands has become quite funny:

          Oct. 4, 2014: 16:50 pm. YES. For now.

          A 2-2 draw with Swansea looks likely to have saved Pardew. He could thank Papiss Cisse after his brace, but keep your eyes peeled as anything could happen.

          Oct. 4, 2014: 09:00 am. YES

          We'll put YES for now, but bear in mind that Newcastle take on Swansea today ahead of an international break that would give a new manager time to bed in. At 5 p.m. tonight, the answer might be slightly different although Alan was in good form in his prematch news conference.

          "The characters grow, the characters will grow as we go along," he said. "This is a difficult club to play for, I think. It can be the greatest club in the world to play for when you are winning, but we are not winning, so it becomes even harder to play for us, and we need to make sure we can handle that.

          "These players are going to learn more in the next six weeks, probably, than they have for the last two years of their careers.''

          In another interview, Pards said he was unhappy that it was starting to effect his life outside the pitch.

          He told the BBC: "My family and friends worry me a little bit, because it's started going past football media at times. That's not nice. But it makes me more determined. That's the make-up I have."

          Watch this space. It could all be over soon.

          Oct. 3, 2014: YES

          "I'm a manager that's thick-skinned. I don't ignore it and it's not that it doesn't not penetrate me because of course it does," Pardew, the Premier League's second longest-serving manager after Arsenal's Arsene Wenger, told a news conference on Thursday.

          "It makes me want to prove people wrong. I need to win games, it's quite simple really. After the games it becomes difficult because we haven't won. The most important thing is that I'm putting the fight in the players and they're showing the fight on the pitch."

          Later, however, the REAL Pardew shone through with some excellent quotes to the Chronicle.

          "I've got some CV and experience that says I can do that and I can turn around this situation," he said. "I've got to lean on that. Nobody else is going to lean on it so it's important that I do.

          "So I will go home and shine my manager of the year trophy to give myself a bit of confidence and come in tomorrow. It's important that I keep my right head."

          Yes, Alan, it is.

          Oct. 2, 2014: YES

          "(It has been) Mentally tough and physically tough. But when I look back now I am proud of myself for everything I've done. It's been a winding road and it's been up and down. Honestly it's had everything. There's been days when I've felt good and bad."

          While these could easily be the words of the Magpies boss himself, it's actually Ryan Taylor talking to The Chronicle about making his long-awaited comeback.

          Taylor has not played a Premier League game in more than two years, since when he has been blighted by serious knee problems, but the 30-year-old came through a behind-closed-doors friendly win over Carlisle earlier this week and could be available for first-team selection after the international break.

          Taylor's versatility in defence and midfield, not to mention his free-kick prowess which has helped him score six goals in 41 appearances under Pardew, could give his manager's flagging fortunes a much-needed boost.

          Oct. 1, 2014: YES

          Pardew's future as Newcastle United manager is not under immediate threat and he is expected to be in the dugout when the Magpies travel to Swansea City this weekend, sources have told ESPN FC.

          - Miller: Alan Pardew heads up the Premier League sack race

          Local newspaper The Chronicle, meanwhile, ran with a back page stating that Pardew's future is "up in the air."

          Sept. 30 2014: YES

          Newcastle lost 1-0 to Stoke on Monday night, but Pardew remained at the helm as owner Mike Ashley chose not to swing his axe.

          Pardew's record in 2014 reads thus: L,L,L,W,D,L,L,L,W,W,L,W,L,L,L,L,L,L,W,L,L,D,W,D,L,D,L,L (P28, W6, D4, L18) but he is still in charge at St James' Park.

          "I think we'll have some serious conversations before Saturday because he doesn't want to lose and nor do I," Pardew said after the defeat at Stoke. "I think it's important I show to the team that I'm here to lead the team. I've never really been in this situation before. It's a bit unique, but I'm a professional football manager, that's what I do and that's what I'll continue to do."

          The club's official website offered a short sentence upon the final whistle of the setback, rather than adding to the growing speculation over his future.

          Ashley, for his part, was apparently seen to mouth "Yep, he's gone. Get him out," according to some who have watched the Vine below. Although frankly he could have been saying anything ...