Sage on facing Leeds & international break plans
Pierre Sage says Crystal Palace will be seeking to avenge their late defeat against Ipswich when they travel to Leeds United on Sunday afternoon (20th September, 14:00 BST).
The Eagles bounced back from that late loss at Selhurst Park at the weekend with a thumping 4-0 win over Lech Poznań on Thursday night, getting off to the perfect start in the UEFA Europa League.
But delivering his pre-Leeds press conference in the aftermath of that victory, Sage highlighted the need to get Premier League points on board, starting at Elland Road.
The Manager noted: “It’s always good to win in cups, but the Premier League is our daily job, and we are late in this one because I think we deserved better at Everton and better maybe against Ipswich, and we have a lot of things to manage better in our way of playing.
“Now we need points, and I know that Leeds are really a good team. I saw them at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea, and I saw the game against Newcastle too, and they are really, really good. We have to recover, to be fit and in shape to play against them – and why not do what we didn't do against Ipswich?
“We have another context in a special atmosphere, because with the stadium in Leeds and these fans it’s really crazy, and we have to confirm what we did well this evening. We have to do better than we did against Ipswich.
“We have a lot of challenges, but first of all we need to recover, and we need to prepare our game in two days only.”
Sunday’s game is Palace’s last competitive fixture before the aforementioned three-week international break, in a change to the standard match calendar at this point in the season.
“I'm not happy because I wanted to continue to work with the players, but for some of them it's always good to come back to their country to play in another context,” Sage noted.
“But the best way to leave the team on Sunday evening is to leave with a good thing in our heads, and for that we need to win in Leeds.
“It’s the same for everybody. We knew that from a long time. We know that we can let the players recover, and after that we have time to come back to the pitch and to come back to our level of performance.
“But you know, we have a lot of players in national teams and the young of the academy are in national teams too. That's why we have to build a team to play maybe one friendly game in several weeks and to prepare our game against Nottingham [Forest on 11th October].
“We will let [the players] recover a little bit to be fresh and to come back because our schedules are really busy, especially from here to Christmas. That's why sometimes when you do less, it's more. The best way to be in shape is to recover and to work well after having recovered.”
Asked about whether Ismaïla Sarr – who made a late return as a substitute on Thursday night – was fit enough to either start or play 90 minutes at Elland Road, Sage said: “To start: maybe. To play 90 minutes: I don't think so.”
The Manager also discussed whether he expected Dean Henderson and Jean-Philippe Mateta to return after the international break: “I think Dean will be more sure. Mateta is more uncertain. That's why we have to wait.
“I maybe can give you the best answer in two weeks, but I know you want quick answers. The most important thing is to take care of them and to give them the chance to come back as quick as we can.”
When he plays as he played this evening, he could be captain every day
—Pierre Sage
Adam Wharton has worn the captain’s armband in Henderson’s absence, and Sage explained: “I think he’s a different captain to Dean. With his performance, he could be captain, but he's really a leader in the dressing room.
“Adam shares things if you want, but he's shy. And I think he's a leader on the pitch and when he plays as he played this evening, he could be captain every day.
“You know, if this kind of player with this kind of level is not in the national team of the country, it's a good thing because that's a sign there's a lot of quality. I think he can win some ranks in this hierarchy because if he plays like he played this evening, it's really an incredible player.
“He's different, because he sees the play forward like nobody else. I think he's able to play in one touch and to unbalance all the teams. He always looks for the back of the last line of the opponent.
“Now, I think he's better and better to recover the ball too, and with time, I hope he can drive more forward and affect the opponent. I think that's the first gap he has to deal with to continue his improvement.”
Leeds United v Crystal Palace
- Sunday, 20th September
- 14:00 BST
- Premier League
- Elland Road
- Live audio commentary on Palace TV+.