Crystal Palace Turns to Pierre Sage as Iraola Chase Stalls

Crystal Palace’s search for a new head coach has taken a sharp turn, with Lens boss Pierre Sage now moving into focus as talks are expected in the early part of this week.

Palace had pushed hard for Andoni Iraola, identifying the Bournemouth manager as their preferred successor to Oliver Glasner. A firm proposal went in, the kind of offer that usually signals a club ready to close a deal and move on with its summer planning.

Then the landscape shifted.

Iraola is now set to begin formal discussions with Liverpool in the coming days as the Anfield club look to replace Arne Slot, who was sacked on Saturday. With Liverpool entering the race and moving quickly, Palace’s hopes of landing their first-choice target have all but faded.

That setback has forced a reset in south London.

Chairman Steve Parish and the Palace hierarchy are refusing to panic. The club are assessing a number of options, determined not to be bounced into a rushed appointment at a pivotal moment for the squad and its direction.

Sage has emerged from that shortlist as a serious contender.

The 47-year-old Lens coach is building a reputation as one of Europe’s brightest tacticians, his work catching the eye of recruitment teams beyond France. BBC Sport first revealed Palace’s interest on 8 May, though at that stage the club were still fully locked on to Iraola and a potential deal with Bournemouth.

Circumstances have changed, and so has the priority list.

Sage is said to be open to joining Palace, and a face-to-face meeting with club officials is expected in the coming days. Those talks will give Parish and his board a closer look at the man who could be asked to steer the next phase of the club’s Premier League project.

With Iraola seemingly Liverpool-bound and Glasner already gone, Palace’s next move will say plenty about their ambition – and about how much of that growing European buzz around Pierre Sage they truly believe.