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Crystal Palace appointed Neil Warnock as manager on Thursday in the hope that he can lead the club back to the Premier League.

Palace was relegated in 2005 and fired former England under-21 coach Peter Taylor this week after slipping to 19th in the second-tier League Championship.

The south London club spent the past 20 years flitting between the top two divisions, and Warnock said he was confident of lifting Palace back up.

"I'm a bit of a realist but I know that if it's down to hard work anyone in this division can do it," Warnock said.

Palace has 10 points from its first 10 matches in the 24-team division. It is 13 points behind leader Watford, so it still has a chance to be one of the three promoted teams at the end of the season.

Chairman Simon Jordan, who has now appointed eight managers in seven years, said there was no pressure to succeed immediately for Warnock, who is famed for his confrontational behavior and forthright opinions.

"I'm not setting targets," Jordan said. "I think Neil's actions will speak a lot louder than my words."

The 58-year-old Warnock guided unfashionable Sheffield United, the club he supports, to the Premier League but it was relegated in May after just one season.

He left following the demotion, leaving him without a club in the offseason as manager or player for the first time since 1968.

"I had five or six decent offers," Warnock said. "I'd been there six or seven years, which is a long time, and I didn't think it was right to jump into the first job that came up.

"It's my last job, without a shadow of a doubt."

Palace beat Sheffield United 3-2 last month, so Warnock won't meet his former club until the return match at Bramall Lane on Dec. 29.

"I'll always be a supporter, but my job is here now," Warnock said.