Allardyce 'a better man' after England sacking

Sam Allardyce says he is ready to move on from the "dark moment" of being sacked from his job as England manager.

The 62-year-old was relieved of his duties as national team boss just 67 days into his reign after he was caught on video stating that there are ways to get around the Football Association's rules on third party ownership.

The former West Ham boss returned to football this week when he was chosen to succeed Alan Pardew in charge of Crystal Palace.

Allardyce admits it was tough to get over losing his job with the Three Lions, but insists he has learned from his mistakes as he looks to keep his new side in the Premier League.

“The first four weeks was one of the darkest moments of my career," he told Sky Sports. 

"My family and I have had that problem, we’ve all had to deal with that problem but eventually time passes and you overcome those adversities and move on.

"I know I’m the same man. I’m probably a better man for the experience. In adversity you have to become stronger and make sure you don’t make those mistakes again so you learn from it.

"Moving on and finally putting this to bed is taking this job and being determined to be a good manager at Crystal Palace again.

"It was a black, dark moment - one I wish had never happened in my life. But I can’t dwell on the past. I always think of what I can do in the future.

"Hopefully I can come to Palace and enjoy working with young people, I always like working with young people, it keeps you young. There is a lot of pressure at first when you first take over a club that’s struggling but you want to go and do your best for yourself, your family and the club that employ you."

Who said it: Scrooge or Mourinho?

The London side sit just one point above the relegation zone ahead of Monday's encounter with Watford. And Allardyce is confident he can get the club out of their precarious position if they make good signings in the coming transfer market.

"Players, club, ambition, it has all that.

"If we get recruitment right, the atmosphere right and the players here play to their full potential we should get out of trouble. But there is no guarantee of that.

"Part of this job is finding quickly what the faults are and making them better. First and foremost, I have to improve the players on the field in terms of getting a result."