Pierre Sage Gets Reprieve at Crystal Palace but Needs Result at Spurs

• Crystal Palace chair Steve Parish has decided not to sack Pierre Sage yet, but the manager has been left in no doubt that Saturday’s trip to Tottenham is decisive for his future.
• Palace are 17th and have conceded 19 goals in eight Premier League games, the most in the division, after a 5-0 loss at Brighton and a 2-0 defeat by Newcastle.
• Sage is understood to keep the support of his squad, but the club’s hierarchy is said to be split over whether to fire him after only 12 games in charge.

A Tight Fixture List Buys Sage Four Days

Pierre Sage will take charge of Crystal Palace at Fulham on Wednesday night after a short reprieve. The Frenchman’s position was in serious doubt following a 2-0 defeat by Newcastle at the weekend, and the club’s chair, Steve Parish, has decided not to act while Palace play twice in four days. After the Carabao Cup tie at Craven Cottage comes the Premier League trip to Tottenham on Saturday.

The message from the boardroom is clear, though. Sage is understood to have been left in no doubt that the Spurs game is decisive for his future, and he could be dismissed if Palace lose it. He had already been warned that he could be sacked if results did not improve quickly, and the Newcastle loss came a week after a 5-0 thrashing at Brighton.

Sage attended the Ballon d’Or ceremony in London on Monday evening. He has been in the job for only 12 games, having arrived from Lens after Oliver Glasner left.

The Defensive Numbers Behind the Pressure

Palace sit 17th. They have conceded 19 goals in eight Premier League matches, the highest total in the division. Before the Newcastle game, BBC Sport counted 17 goals against after seven matches, the highest tally at that stage of a Premier League season in the club’s history, and noted that Palace had shipped at least two goals in 11 of their previous 13 league outings.

The same analysis showed Palace had faced the most shots (125) and the most shots on target (43) of any top-flight team, with the highest expected goals against total at 14.8. Sage said after the Brighton game that he felt shamed by the performance, and he apologised to supporters.

Personnel has been a problem. Axel Disasi, signed on loan from Chelsea to replace the key defender Maxence Lacroix, has only just returned from a three-match suspension. At Brighton, Sage gave 18-year-old centre-back Honest Ahanor, on loan from Atalanta, a second Premier League start, and the teenager was substituted after 53 minutes. Ismaila Sarr missed the Newcastle defeat with a recurrence of the groin injury that kept him out earlier in the season.

Who Backs Him, and Who Might Replace Him

There are some positive signs for Sage. Two leading players are said to have sent him messages saying they still have faith he can turn things around. There was also improvement in the 2-2 Europa League draw at Besiktas in midweek, and Sage is believed to have been delighted with the response of Jean-Philippe Mateta after the striker returned from injury. Mateta is in the final year of his contract and failed in an attempt to have it ruled invalid by an independent Premier League tribunal and Fifa.

There is sympathy for Sage at boardroom level, but Palace’s hierarchy is said to be split. Some directors favour bringing in Thomas Frank or Sean Dyche to steady the club. Rob Edwards, the former Wolves manager, has also been mentioned as a potential contender.

Sarr remains a concern. The Senegal forward has made no secret of his disappointment that Palace rejected a bid from Liverpool in the summer, and Sage needs last season’s player of the year back on the pitch if the club are to recover from a poor start to life after Glasner.

For now the decision rests on a Saturday afternoon in north London. Palace travel to Spurs with the league’s leakiest defence, a manager with a reprieve measured in days and a board that has not yet made up its mind.

WRITTEN BY

Jarrod

Jarrod Partridge is the Founder of Futbol Chronicle and an accredited journalist with over 30 years of experience following international football. A member of the AIPS International Sports Press Association, Jarrod has covered matches at stadiums around the world, bringing first-hand insight to every match report, player profile, and tactical analysis he writes.

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