Crystal Palace manager Pierre Sage faces pressure following a difficult start to his tenure, prompted by criticism from Jérôme Rothen over his attitude and departure from RC Lens.
Jérôme Rothen Questions Pierre Sage After Crystal Palace Drop to 17th
Pierre Sage is paying the price for a misplaced attitude after leaving RC Lens for the Premier League, according to Jérôme Rothen. Speaking on RMC, Rothen analyzed the 47-year-old manager’s turbulent start, where Crystal Palace sits 17th in the Premier League table after winning only three of their opening 12 matches.
Duga' : "Pierre Sage fait une saison incroyable. Après ça, il a quand même le droit de se poser des questions sur son avenir. Je ne comprends pas en quoi il n'aurait pas le droit de réfléchir à son avenir sous prétexte qu'il est sous contrat. Il ne doit rien au RC Lens." pic.twitter.com/RyWKaBsxTj
Rothen pointed directly to the manner of Sage’s departure from Artois, where he spent just one season and captured the Coupe de France before moving to England. Crystal Palace finished 15th in the Premier League last season, and the current campaign has brought defeats against teams that play in the second half of the table.
He said everything and its opposite last year,
Rothen stated on RMC. In his attitude, he thought he was too good. Congratulations on the victory in the Coupe de France with Lens. What’s funny today is that he is reproaching Crystal Palace that the recruitment is not up to what he expected, but on the other hand, at Lens, it didn’t bother him not to say anything about the recruitment because he didn’t participate in it.
Recruitment Complaints and the Lens Departure
Rothen contrasted the manager’s current public dissatisfaction with English recruitment policies against his silence during his tenure at Lens, where the club provided players that Sage managed internally.
They gave him players, he made that mayonnaise very well internally,
Rothen added. But since he had to pull the blanket toward himself, because for me he is a false modest, he said: “the year at Lens, magnificent.” And there, a big English club comes to get him. That’s when he thought he was too good.
According to Rothen, if Sage had been sure of his strength, he would have remained in France to contest the Champions League with Lens rather than accepting an offer from a side that finished 15th or 16th the previous year.
Squad Reaction and Premier League Reality
Crystal Palace’s struggles have intensified as the team fails to show reaction on the pitch. Rothen noted that the squad currently lacks many things under Sage’s guidance, suffering defeats against teams that play in the second half of the table.
If you are sure of your strength, you do things differently with your directors at Lens and you would have accepted to play the Champions League with Lens,
Rothen said. But since he lacked experience and knowledge of high-level football, the first club made him an offer and there we were explained that he could not refuse Crystal Palace. But Crystal Palace, last year, they finished 15th or 16th.
Keep reading
