Sage reflects on opening-day defeat
Pierre Sage says Crystal Palace played in the right way to win their opening-day game at Everton in the first-half – but a lack of sharpness cost them in front of goal, and in the second 45 minutes.
The new Palace Manager’s team impressed in the first 45 minutes and could consider themselves highly unfortunate to go in a goal down at the interval, having hit the post twice and played some eye-catching, fluid football.
But Everton goals either side of half-time from Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall and Thierno Barry gave the Toffees a two-goal head which eventually proved unassailable.
“We played in the right way to win in the first-half and not in the second,” Sage told Palace TV. “But when you play in this direction, you have to score.
“We missed two or three big opportunities and we gave the goal to the opponent. That's why the second-half was difficult, with them taking the second goal too.
“And when we had the ball in second-half, we didn’t play quick enough – that's why it was difficult to play in their half – and we didn't create other chances.
“Sometimes, you know, you do the job and you don't have the salary at the end – and today it was like this. We have to convert that because it's some actions between players.
“Sometimes you play very well and you can keep it on YouTube, and when you lose your finishing, you take the clip and you put it in the waste. That's why a goal is very important: to give the things that the team are looking for.
“It’s important for us to do that, especially in this kind of game, because I think they were not too much better than us today, and we had the opportunity to win.”
A day of fresh faces for Palace saw Dwight McNeil, Anan Khalaili and Takehiro Tomiyasu – plus Evann Guessand for the first time in his second loan spell – make their competitive debuts for the club.
“If we took them, they have something to help with our team,” Sage explained. “That's why they play.
“Now it's difficult, because they didn't train too much with us, and their understanding with their teammates for the moment is not really fluent.
“That's why it takes some time maybe to play more quickly in the second-half. But we win minutes that we didn't have before the game and we have to keep that.”
Palace will now turn their attentions to Sage’s first game in charge at Selhurst Park, against Manchester City on Friday night. The Manager concluded: “Now the game against Manchester City is the most important game for us.
“This one is done. We lose, we know that, and we have to do the job at home, especially for our fans, but for ourselves too, because today we saw that we could win, but we lost.
“Now we have to take the things and keep it in our hands – and nobody can take that from us.”