Crystal Palace have sacked their manager, Pierre Sage, after losing 3-1 to Liverpool on Sunday
Pierre Sage, manager of Crystal Palace looks on during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Crystal Palace FC and Liverpool FC at Selhurst Park on November 8, 2026 in London, United Kingdom
Pierre Sage, manager of Crystal Palace looks on during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Crystal Palace FC and Liverpool FC at Selhurst Park on November 8, 2026 in London, United Kingdom(Image: Sebastian Frej/Getty Images)
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Crystal Palace have sacked manager Pierre Sage following their 3-1 defeat to Liverpool at Selhurst Park on Sunday.
The Frenchman, who signed a three-year contract when named Oliver Glasner’s replacement in the summer, has become the second Premier League managerial casualty of the season after Palace’s latest loss left them bottom of the table heading into the November international break.
Goals from Alexis Mac Allister, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak clinched victory for the Reds, but it proved to be the final straw for Sage - who has been under increasing pressure since Palace were thrashed 5-0 by bitter-rivals Brighton & Hove Albion last month.
Sage’s dismissal was confirmed by Palace on Thursday in an official statement. It read: "Crystal Palace Football Club can confirm that Pierre Sage has left his role as manager.
READ MORE: Pierre Sage insists Crystal Palace 'deserved better' vs Liverpool as sack looms - 'They killed us'
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"Three members of Pierre’s coaching staff – Jamal Alioui, Damien Della Santa and Sandy Guichard – have also left the club.
"The club would like to place on record its thanks to Pierre and his staff for their efforts during their time in South London, and wish them well for the future.
"An update on the process of appointing a new Manager will be provided in due course."
Sage, who joined the Eagles after a successful season in charge of Lens, won five of his 16 matches in charge.
However, only two of them came in the Premier League - against Fulham and Nottingham Forest - while his side had the worst defensive record in the English top-flight, having conceded 24 goals from just 10 games.
Palace will now look to appoint Sage’s successor during the November international break, with former Everton manager Sean Dyche one of the names under consideration.
The Athletic reports that Thomas Frank, Vitor Pereira and Tony Popovic are also potential successors, while former Everton boss Frank Lampard is another who has his admirers at Selhurst Park after guiding Coventry City to promotion to the Premier League.
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 06: Frank Lampard, Manager of Coventry City, looks on after the Premier League 2026/27 match between Everton and Coventry City at Hill Dickinson Stadium on November 06, 2026 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Coventry City boss Frank Lampard(Image: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
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In his final press conference as Eagles manager, Sage had insisted that his side ‘deserved better’ against Liverpool and was adamant that he did not have to convince anyone he was the right man for the job.
“I think it's the scenario of the game, because we started well, we created the chances to score first, but we missed them,” he said. “And by doing this mistake in possession and conceding the transition and set-pieces just before the half-time, it was really hard to go in the dressing room with that.
“But you know, the worst thing was, with 1-0 for them, we opened the space because we had to come back to the score and we had to push. And we let a lot of space and with their speed they killed us in transitions.
“Today we defended well when we were in low block, but when we opened the space against this team with this speed, it was too difficult for us.
“A lot of times I’ve said ‘we deserved better today’. I think today it was the case too. But you know, football is not about what you deserve. It's about how efficient you are and we have a lack of efficiency offensively and defensively.
“And for the moment, the situation is like this because of that. The performance was better today, but if we were in a more comfortable situation, we can build on this kind of thing.
“But now we have to take points and it was not the case today. When a team is in our situation, the most important thing is about the confidence, about the way to act with efficiency at the best level of every one of us.
“With this kind of thing, when you think you did, not fully, but more or less the job on the play and you don't have the result expected, it's really difficult.”
Safe continued: “If my job is the way to convince people the best thing, then they just have to believe in that,” he said. “If that’s not the case, then they will take a decision.
“I always have confidence in myself. If I’m not 100 per cent involved in what I have to do, it’s a big mistake.
“Today, my job is not the most important thing. The most important thing is to find an efficient solution for the team and club.”
Earlier today (Friday), Michael Carrick became the first Premier League managerial casualty of the Premier League season after he was sacked by Manchester United.