By Tom Josephs
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Alan Pardew has got the backing from the Newcastle United boardroom to turn things around as he bids to avoid setting an unwanted record on Monday night.
If Wigan leave St James' Park with all three points then Pardew will have become the first Newcastle boss to suffer five Premier League defeats in a row.
But a frustrated Pardew is confident the encouragement he has from owner Mike Ashley and managing director Derek Llambias can help bring the winning feeling back to Tyneside.
Backing: Alan Pardew said he thinks the board have supported him
The Newcastle boss, whose side sit just two points above the bottom three, said: 'The word from the boardroom is concern. We want to get going again and obviously to do well. They've given me massive support this week in trying to help me get the result I want, almost asking me what can they do for me?
'At the minute there's not much they can do for me if truth be known. Little things here and there we talked about could help but they've been very forthcoming in that.'
Pardew is expecting to dip in to the transfer market when the window opens next month but a string of injuries to key players means he is not yet sure what areas of his squad needs strengthening the most.
He will welcome striker Shola Ameobi back to his bench tonight after groin trouble. The likes of Hatem Ben Arfa, Yohan Cabaye and Steven Taylor headline a long list of absentees.
Pardew, who only signed an eight-year contract in September, said: 'Unfortunately for us we've had a real turn of events in terms of injuries.
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'I can't think of a Premier League team in the last couple of years that has suffered as badly as we have in terms of key players. You can almost look in every position.
'People are asking me about the window and what am I going to do but you could argue we're weak in every position through injury. In my view the January window isn't something we can focus on at the minute in terms of a target.
'We have to keep our eye on every position and make sure that in January we react to who we get back because one or two will come back, for sure.'
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