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.”
