Pardew ready for relegation fight

Ex-West Ham boss Pardew played for Charlton in the 1990s

Alan Pardew has conceded that he faces a tall order to keep Charlton in the Premiership after being officially unveiled as their new manager.

Charlton are stuck in the bottom three of the table and Pardew told the club website: "I'd be naive if I didn't say the odds were stacked against us.

"We need to win half our games and that is a tough call.

"But the message to the players is that we are going to fight all the way to the end and draw in someone else."

606 DEBATE: Can Pardew keep Charlton up?

Pardew was appointed late on Christmas Eve to replace Les Reed, who left the club by mutual consent.

The former Charlton player is the club's third manager of the season after Reed and Iain Dowie.

His first game in charge will be on Wednesday night against Fulham and he added: "The reaction of the players has been exactly what I wanted.

"I feel we need to come in in a really positive mode.

"It was an easy decision to come here because it was my old club, the chairman and chief executive were here before and sometimes in life it is nice to go somewhere you feel you can get a good shot at it and I trust and I feel I will get that here."