Palace meet with Pierre Sage
Proposal on the table
Deal now in manager’s hands
Crystal Palace have reportedly made progress in an attempt to convince RC Lens manager Pierre Sage to jump ship to South London and replace Oliver Glasner. Sage led Lens to a historic campaign in France, winning their first Coupe de France and taking PSG right to the final weeks in a title race.
His name has been rumoured with the Palace vacancy over the last few weeks, and is now considered the ‘priority’ of Palace’s ownership.
A difficult factor has been that Sage will not be able to leave Lens for free, and the Sang et Our are trying to establish their position in the first place, reportedly unaware of Sage’s intentions as things stand.
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An ever-changing story
As with transfer news, manager news also appears to be somewhat of a rollercoaster. New information comes to light every couple of hours and when established, well regarded journalists are breaking stories, it can be hard to keep up.
Over the course of the last 22 hours or so, it was first reported by Sebastien Vidal and Santi Aouna that Palace were now focusing solely on an attempt to convince Sage that Palace was the right step for his career.
At approximately 15:00 on Tuesday 2nd June, Ben Jacobs, in conjunction with TalkSPORT, then confirmed that Crystal Palace had held a meeting with Sage on Monday, outlining their project to the French manager.
What all the reports have in common is that Sage is reportedly Palace’s priority and number one target, with Steve Parish and Palace’s ownership seemingly adamant that they have found their man.
Other names linked
There have also been links to the likes of Sean Dyche, Frank Lampard and Kieran Mckenna, if Palace are unable to progress with a deal for Sage. Dino Topmoller is another name who has been mentioned, although the rumours around the former Eintracht Frankfurt boss have gone quiet.
Ultimately, Sage is the priority. He would bring a superb style of play to Selhurst, and a winning mindset and approach to match.
At Lens, he has worked with some excellent young talent, and Palace may be in a position of strength when it comes to rebuilding the squad this Summer, with Sage having pulling power with players he has previously worked with.
This saga will continue to rumble as the weeks go by, but Palace’s stance seems to be clear. A new manager needs to be appointed as soon as possible.