Crystal Palace to Sack Pierre Sage, Foot Mercato Reports

Crystal Palace will relieve manager Pierre Sage of his duties, following a 3-1 home defeat to Liverpool, Foot Mercato reported.

The decision comes after a disastrous start to the Premier League season, which leaves the club at the bottom of the table with the worst defense in the championship, having conceded 24 goals in 10 games.

The French manager, who was appointed in the summer after a successful campaign with RC Lens, will see his three-year contract terminated. His dismissal makes him the first Premier League manager to lose his job this season.

The defeat at Selhurst Park was described as the final straw after a series of poor results, with the media in England having mentioned the possibility of a sacking for weeks. The decision was reported by The Athletic.

A Disastrous Start

Prior to the Liverpool match, Crystal Palace was last in the Premier League standings. The team has only registered two victories in the league so far this season.

Pierre Sage had acknowledged the gap between his team’s performances and expectations, stating, Nous devons être plus compétitifs. En ce moment, nous créons des occasions, nous attendons beaucoup de choses, mais nous n’obtenons pas les résultats espérés.

Sage arrived at the club with high hopes after having been named Ligue 1 Coach of the Season for leading Lens to a second-place finish and a Coupe de France victory. However, his tenure at Selhurst Park has been short-lived, marked by struggles to adapt to the English game and the team’s inability to reproduce the intense pressing style he was known for at Lens.

The club’s poor form dates back to mid-October, with Palace not having won a league match since then. The team’s struggles are compounded by the absence of Ismaila Sarr, who scored 21 goals last season and is currently injured.

Potential Successors

The club’s decision-makers are already searching for a replacement for Sage. Potential candidates mentioned by the British media include Thomas Frank, Vitor Pereira, Frank Lampard, and Sean Dyche. The international break provides a natural opportunity for the club to make a change before their next league match against Coventry on November 21.

Dyche, the former Nottingham Forest manager, is understood to have supporters within the club’s hierarchy. The next two weeks will be decisive for Sage’s future at the south London club.

Sage Refuses to Explain Dropping Axel Disasi

In a recent match against Hoffenheim, he unexpectedly dropped defender Axel Disasi from the squad, a decision he refused to explain. When pressed for reasons, Sage stated, C’est une décision que j’ai prise cet après-midi. C’est une décision interne, je ne veux pas la commenter. The defender was reportedly expected to be available for the Liverpool match.

Earlier in the season, Sage had also opted to leave out Jaydee Canvot and Evann Guessand, situations that had also generated discussion. Against Hoffenheim, Palace took the lead through an Alexander Prass goal in the 7th minute but saw Adam Wharton sent off in the 77th minute before Daichi Kamada equalized in the 90th+1 minute to secure a 1-1 draw.

The situation is particularly tense as it follows the immense success of Sage’s predecessor, Oliver Glasner, who won the FA Cup and the Europa Conference League with the club. Sage himself recently commented on the pressures of his job, downplaying the difficulty.

Non, ce n’est pas un métier difficile. Je ne sauve pas de vies. Je ne travaille pas dans une mine. Le football n’est pas un travail difficile, he said, adding that it is a matter of asking the right questions and finding the right solutions. https://www.footmercato.net/a5379239113485750970-crystal-palace-va-licencier-pierre-sage

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