Crystal Palace manager Pierre Sage (left) and Nottingham Forest manager Oliver Glasner acknowledge each other prior to the final whistle during the Premier League match at Selhurst Park, London. Picture date: Sunday October 11, 2026. (Image: PA)
Crystal Palace manager Pierre Sage (left) and Nottingham Forest manager Oliver Glasner acknowledge each other prior to the final whistle during the Premier League match at Selhurst Park, London. Picture date: Sunday October 11, 2026. (Image: PA)
Pierre Sage acknowledges that Crystal Palace’s performances were very up and down, despite the Eagles beating Nottingham Forest 3-1 at Selhurst Park.
The main storyline of the afternoon was supposed to be Oliver Glasner’s return to Selhurst for the first time since leaving the club in the summer. However, in the end, the big talking point was how Nottingham Forest walked away from the game with no points.
The visitors created multiple opportunities throughout the game, but a combination of poor finishing and brilliant performance from Palace goalkeeper Walter Benitez saw them thwarted.
The Eagles then stunned Forest with three goals in 18 minutes, Daichi Kamada and Jefferson Lerma giving Palace a 2-1 lead at the end of the first half, before Yéremy Pino sealed the win early in the second half.
The win over Forest was Crystal Palace’s first home Premier League victory this season, but Sage felt Forest’s performance suggested they deserved a better result, highlighting his concerns about how his side’s form has varied week to week.
“I'm happy to win our first home Premier League game, but it's not about the fact that we were playing the former manager's team.
“As I told you, I have a lot of respect for him [Glasner] and for what he did here.
“I think they showed today that they're a good team, and perhaps they deserved a better result.
“I want both a good performance and a good result, but at the moment, our performances aren't stable enough, and we have to work on that.”
Sage went into further detail about Crystal Palace’s performance, commending the quality they showed for all three goals but also made the point of needing to show consistency.
“At the beginning, just after we conceded, we had a big opportunity to make it 1–1 from a cross by Khalaili, but Jørgen Strand Larsen shot over.
“At times, we controlled what we were doing. When we scored our first goal, we changed our approach in the build-up. We played more directly and focused on winning the second ball.
“After winning the second ball, the players did some incredible things in tight spaces. The equaliser was a really good goal, and I think the third goal came in more or less the same way. That shows what this team is capable of.
“We need to be as consistent as we were against Leeds. Today, we weren't as good as we were in that game, but we won. We have to accept that and learn from it.
“We're capable of doing it, but now we have to be able to do it game after game and minute after minute within each game.”
It’s an important win for Palace as they prepare to face Lyon, Sage’s former club, in their first away game in the Europa League on Thursday. The Frenchman felt the result would help the Eagles in their preparation for midweek.
“When you win, you always want to play again as soon as possible.
“We have a big game in Lyon on Thursday, and we need to prepare for it. When your mindset is calmer, and you have fewer doubts, you can improve more quickly.
“We know today's performance wasn't perfect. We have to accept that, but we also have to understand that sometimes you need to win games like this.
“If I gave everyone the choice between putting in a good performance today and losing before the Lyon game, or winning today despite not playing perfectly, I think we're in a better position now to prepare for Lyon and the game that follows.”