Pierre Sage Gets Reprieve at Crystal Palace, But Saturday Looms Large
Pierre Sage has been given more time as Crystal Palace manager, but he could still be sacked if his side lose to Tottenham on Saturday. The Guardian reports that the club's chairman, Steve Parish, chose not to dismiss him, partly because of how tightly Palace's fixtures are packed.
The pressure is real. Palace are 17th in the Premier League, the division's lowest-placed side of the 20 clubs outside the relegation places, and have conceded 19 goals in eight league games. That is the most in the division. Their most recent league defeat was a 2-0 home loss to Newcastle at the weekend, following a heavy 5-0 defeat at Brighton. After that run, Sage was told that results would need to improve quickly.
Sage, a former Lens manager, has been in charge for 12 games since joining the club. A reprieve buys him a few days, not a long-term promise.
Palace's schedule is the reason for the timing. They host Fulham in the League Cup, a knockout competition, on Wednesday evening, and then face Tottenham in the league on Saturday. Midweek, they also drew 2-2 at Beşiktaş in the Europa League, the second-tier European competition. Parish felt that sacking a manager between those games would leave little time for any new arrival to make an impact.
Injuries have added to the problems. Ismaila Sarr missed the Newcastle game because of a return of the groin problem that had already kept him out earlier this season. Palace also turned down a bid from Liverpool for the winger during the summer. Axel Disasi, signed on loan from Chelsea to cover for Maxence Lacroix, has just returned from a three-match suspension. A loan means a player is borrowed from another club for a set period.
Jean-Philippe Mateta is another key figure with a question mark hanging over him. The striker is in the final year of his contract, after failing to have it ruled invalid by an independent Premier League tribunal and by FIFA, football's world governing body. A tribunal is a panel that settles disputes, and this one went against him.
If Sage does go, the names are already being discussed. Sky Sports reported that Sean Dyche has emerged as a front-runner for the job. Thomas Frank has also been linked, and Rob Edwards, formerly of Wolves, has been mentioned as a possible contender. None of these moves has been confirmed, and the club has made no announcement.
For Palace supporters, the next few days are about results, not paperwork. A win over Tottenham would ease the pressure considerably. A defeat would put Sage's future back on the table straight away. Either way, the answer will come on the pitch, with the points and the goals doing the talking.
