Crystal Palace have sacked manager Pierre Sage after 16 games in charge, leaving the club at the bottom of the Premier League table.
The departure was confirmed by the club on 12 November 2026, following a 3-1 defeat to Liverpool that extended the team’s winless streak.
“Crystal Palace Football Club can confirm that Pierre Sage has left his role as Manager,” the club said in an official statement. Three members of his coaching staff — Jamal Alioui, Damien Della Santa, and Sandy Guichard — have also left the club.
The decision arrives after a difficult start to the season in which Palace managed only two wins in their opening 10 Premier League matches. The team currently holds the league’s worst defensive record, having conceded 24 goals. The loss to Liverpool on 9 November 2026 marked the club’s fourth league defeat, dropping them to the bottom of the table for the first time since December 2017, according to The Athletic.
Sage was appointed in June on a three-year contract to succeed Oliver Glasner. While his tenure at Lens included a second-place finish in Ligue 1 and a Coupe de France trophy, he struggled to replicate that success in London. Daily Mail Sport reported that internal frustrations grew over training methods, specifically the intensity of sessions held late in the day, as well as a perceived lack of defensive focus.
During Glasner’s time at the helm, the club enjoyed its greatest era ever, capturing the FA Cup, the UEFA Conference League, and the Community Shield.
However, key players from that era left in the summer, including Maxence Lacroix and Daniel Munoz, and the Eagles finished as the lowest spenders across the Premier League during that transfer window. Sage himself had arrived after Palace paid the French club RC Lens £3-£4 million in compensation.
Relations between Sage and Palace chairman Steve Parish had already been strained back in September, after the chairman strongly disapproved of the choice to leave young defender Jaydee Canvot out of the lineup for a loss to Ipswich Town. Palace have won just once in their last eight matches across all competitions, which came in a 1-0 victory over Fulham in the fourth round of the Carabao Cup.
“If my job is the way to convince people the best thing, then they just have to believe in that. If that’s not the case, then they will take a decision,” Sage said following the defeat to Liverpool.
“Today, my job is not the most important thing. The most important thing is to find an efficient solution for the team and club,” Sage said.
“I always say the same thing about what we deserve and what we have,” Sage told Sky Sports.
The club is now searching for a successor during the two-week international break, with options including former Brentford and Tottenham manager Thomas Frank and former Burnley, Everton, and Nottingham Forest head coach Sean Dyche. Other names previously linked to the role include Vitor Pereira and Tony Popovic, while the Daily Express noted admiration for Frank Lampard.
Palace paid a compensation fee of £3-£4 million to appoint Sage in June. Following the two-week break, Palace are scheduled to travel to Coventry for a match before hosting Real Sociedad in the Europa League. The club has said that an update on the appointment of a new manager will be provided in due course.
Earlier coverage: Crystal Palace to Sack Pierre Sage, Foot Mercato Reports
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