Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew believes he'd still be with West Ham United if Dean Ashton had stayed fit.
Pardew led West Ham to an FA Cup Final during his three year reign but was axed in December 2006 after a bad run of results.
He said: "I don't harp on it. My experience there, to my mind, was a fantastic one. I had some great times there.
"It was tough at the start - I had a really tough group, who I inherited, that didn't want to play for the club.
"But I managed to get through that and build a really good side. I left a side that was a lot stronger than when I arrived. I was proud of my achievements at West Ham and I don't harbour any bad feeling.
"I honestly believe that if Dean Ashton hadn't got injured, there's no way I'd have lost my job that year. No way.
"He was absolutely flying. He was England's No.9. It gives me a good comparison to Andy Carroll, because I look at Andy now and, while he's not the same player as Dean, I can see the hunger and the desire to be England's No.9 in Andy.
"Owners have their own agenda. And if you're not part of that agenda, you're not going to survive too long. So I wasn't surprised when the Icelandic group came in that I wasn't around for very long."
