Palace set to sack Sage as Frank emerges as leading contender

Crystal Palace are preparing to dismiss Pierre Sage after Sunday's 3-1 defeat by Liverpool left the club bottom of the Premier League for the first time since December 2017, according to Guardian Football.

Thomas Frank has emerged as the leading contender to take over at Selhurst Park, Sky Sports Football reported, with the former Tottenham and Brentford head coach said to be keen for a new challenge.

Sage was appointed in mid-June as Oliver Glasner's successor but has come under growing pressure since a 5-0 loss to Brighton last month, and Palace have now lost four league games in a row.

The Frenchman has managed just two wins from his ten Premier League matches in charge and Palace currently have the division's worst defensive record, having conceded 24 goals, Guardian Football reported.

There were signs of improvement against Liverpool, but the team's recurring vulnerability from set pieces went unresolved, and the club's hierarchy is understood to have run out of patience despite Sage having overseen only 16 matches.

He is expected to become the first Premier League manager sacked this season, with the decision anticipated on Monday, and Palace are reported to have already begun working on his succession.

Frank, dismissed by Tottenham in February, held talks with Palace during the summer before his move to Selhurst Park stalled, Guardian Football said.

Sean Dyche, the former Nottingham Forest manager, is also said to have support within the club as an experienced option, while another former Forest boss, Vítor Pereira, has been mentioned as a further alternative.

Sage had arrived at Palace on a three-year contract after leaving Lens, where he won the Coupe de France and guided the club into the Champions League in his final season there.

Palace have lost both of their senior central defenders this year, with Marc Guéhi joining Manchester City in January and Maxence Lacroix moving to Chelsea over the summer. Axel Disasi and the teenager Honest Ahanor arrived on loan as replacements, while the club missed out on one of Sage's principal transfer targets, Malick Fofana.

Speaking after the Liverpool defeat, Sage rejected the suggestion that his role had turned into a nightmare but acknowledged the squad required strengthening. "We have to adjust some positions during the winter transfer window to give more solutions," he said.

Palace's immediate focus will turn to who takes charge of the squad if Sage departs, with the club bottom of the table and facing a congested run of fixtures before any January rebuilding can take shape.