Neil Warnock hopes to repay Crystal Palace fans for their loyalty

Neil Warnock feels he owes it to the Crystal Palace supporters to guide the club to Premier League safety this season.

The veteran manager was a popular figure in his first spell in charge at Selhurst Park, but he decided to stand down and take over at QPR in March 2010 when Palace were forced to enter administration as a financial crisis escalated.

But Warnock was happy to return as manager last month following the sudden departure of Tony Pulis just two days before their opening game of the season at Arsenal.

Warnock feared he had incurred the wrath of many a Palace fan when he left for QPR, but he was delighted with the reception he received when he returned to Selhurst Park with the west London side the following season and he is looking forward to repaying the fans' loyalty. 

"I do feel it's the right club for me and I do feel like I owe a little bit to the fans," Warnock said. "The fans know how it was when we were in administration - it was very difficult to keep the boat rolling.

"When I came back with QPR I thought I'd get a bit of stick. It was probably the most emotional day I've ever had in my life because the majority of the ground was behind me.

"It was a fabulous day for me so it's nice to get the opportunity now, when it's a bit hectic again, to try to steady the ship."

Pulis was named Premier League manager of the season after steering Palace from the bottom of the table to 11th place, and the players were understandably disappointed with his shock exit.

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But Warnock insists there has been no bitterness towards him and has backed his players to prove the doubters wrong.

"I think they had a great time with Tony," Warnock said. "I'm sure certain people think we might plummet now we've got new people on board but I don't see that.

"I look at where these players finished in the league table and I think they warranted that - if anything I think we're even better now."

Club-record signing James McArthur could make his debut against Burnley on Saturday along with fellow new arrivals Kevin Doyle and Zeki Fryers, and Warnock is happy with the balance in his squad following a busy transfer deadline day.

"We were looking for players that weren't going to disrupt anything already here because the dressing room is probably the most important thing," he said.

"I'm just looking forward to the game now and seeing how we play and it'll be nice with the crowd - Selhurst Park is a very special place.

"I'm sure Burnley will be looking at this game as a winnable game and we'll be the same."