Alan Pardew will make it a double return on Saturday as he is allowed back into a stadium for the first time since his seven game ban.
Its a double day for Alan Pardew on Saturday, with the home defeat to Everton on Tuesday evening he completed the first part of his ban, having not been able to be in the stdium when Newcastle play for the first three of those games, he is now able to sit in the stands for the remaing four games of his punishment.
Mind you he will be pleased that he wasnt in St James Park last night to witness Newcastle's 3-0 home defeat to Everton, a result that will give renewed hope to Saints fans that their team can overhaul the Geordies on Saturday and regain 8th place and not only that but keep their noses in front for the rest of the season.
A win for Saints will give them a two point cushion although with a trip to Manchester City up the following week and Newcastle home to Manchester United the race for 8th will have a few twists in it before the end of the season.
But welcome back to Alan Pardew, his role in rebuilding Saints after administration has never been fully recognised due to our former Chairman airbrushing him out of the history books and many supporters sadly going along with that.
It should be recognised that Alan Pardew was working on behalf of the club before the Liebherr takeover, whilst Nicola Cortese was sat in Switzerland, Pardew was working alongside people over here, identifying player targets and negotiating with those players, to ensure Saints had a decent chance of starting the season with a semblance of an experienced side to put out.
In his year in charge he not only put down the foundations for what we have achieved since overseeing the signings of Lambert and Jose Fonte for instance but brought back the feelgood factor with our win at Wembley in the Johnstone's Paint Trophy Final, ironically the 4th anniversary of which will be the day before he returns to St Mary's on Saturday.
Of course as a manager here he made mistakes, but overall he took the squad from a shell to one that the core of which could not only gain promotion to the Championship but straight up to the Premier the season after, whether he would have achieved that will always be unknown and Nigel Adkins part should always be remembered, but the manner in which Pardew was sacked was atrocious, perhaps now with Cortese gone, Saints fans can accord Alan Pardew a welcome that his contribution to the club fully deserves.