Thursday 31 October 2019 13:25, UK
Alan Pardew says he signed Emmanuel Adebayor to cause "chaos" in opposition defences between now and the summer.
Adebayor this week signed a short-term Palace deal as Pardew landed a player he first tried to sign a decade ago during his time as West Ham boss.
The striker, who instead joined Arsenal and went on to play for Manchester City and Real Madrid, could play some part against Stoke in Saturday's FA Cup tie after months without a club following his release from Tottenham.
"Of course [I thought my chance to work with Adebayor had passed]," Pardew said. "Once a player reaches that level, and they're bouncing around the big clubs, unless I become the manager of one of those I wasn't going to see him.
"But he's always been a player that I've always thought can disrupt games. He disrupts games, he can create a chaos factor, and you can't underestimate that in the Premier League.
"You need a player who's got x-factor, and for whatever physical shape he's in, he will create a moment that could change the game, any game, and that of course is why he's here."
Palace have lost Connor Wickham to a three-match suspension for elbowing Tottenham's Jan Vertonghen, and Pardew said: "He's learned a harsh lesson this week.
"I've disciplined him about the incident, that's not what we do here. And he's regretful of how it looked, he didn't mean to catch him quite like that, he was trying to get the guy off who was pulling his shirt.
"Nevertheless, he's learned a tough lesson. Financially it's going to cost him, and it's going to cost us: three massive games he misses."
