Every new manager wants a full squad, a quiet building and six clear weeks. Pierre Sage gets none of the three.
Crystal Palace’s first-team squad reports back to Copers Cope for pre-season training today, Friday 10th July, four days after Sage himself began work, as confirmed in the club’s official announcements and reporting from Football.London. But this is a pre-season return unlike any in the club’s recent history: ten Palace players Daniel Muñoz, Jefferson Lerma, Chadi Riad, Maxence Lacroix, Jean-Philippe Mateta, Dean Henderson, Jørgen Strand Larsen, Yeremy Pino, Chris Richards and Owen Goodman were still involved at the World Cup as the knockout rounds began, per We Are Palace. For a fanbase buzzing after a Conference League triumph and a bold managerial appointment, day one of the Sage era arrives with most of its stars still on another continent.
Yet, looking closely at the calendar, this staggered start may be exactly what Sage needs.
A Split Squad And A Staggered Return
Under the mandatory three-week post-tournament break secured by FIFPRO, each World Cup player is due back exactly three weeks after their nation’s elimination. Daichi Kamada and Ismaïla Sarr, whose Japan and Senegal sides exited in the Round of 32, should return in time for the friendly at Bromley on 25th July. Lacroix and Mateta, whose France side beat Morocco 2-0 on Thursday to reach the semi-finals, will be among the very last back potentially into early August if Les Bleus reach the final.
That means Sage’s first match in charge, against Swindon Town on 18th July, will be contested largely by fringe players and academy graduates. Romain Esse and Matheus França have a fortnight’s head start to make their case, and the Como Cup fixtures against RC Lens and Famalicão in late July will still be missing the core of last season’s side. The last warm-up, away at SC Freiburg on 15th August, is realistically the only fixture where Sage sees something close to his strongest XI.
Where Óscar Mingueza And The Early Returners Fit In
The one senior face already through the door is Óscar Mingueza, confirmed this week as Sage’s first signing on a four-year deal. The Spain international told Palace TV he “already wants to start training and playing” — and he will get his wish, with a genuine opportunity to absorb Sage’s 3-4-2-1 tactical ideas before the World Cup contingent returns and competition for places resets.
The same logic applies to Kamada, who has committed his future until 2027. A midfielder with two trophies in two seasons at the club, back in the building by late July, is the ideal on-pitch translator for a new coach’s ideas. Sage has been open about this challenge, telling Palace TV that training rhythm and content will be adapted around players returning at different times.
There is a quieter benefit too. Palace’s opening weeks of the Premier League season including an early meeting with Manchester City at Selhurst Park will come with World Cup players at varying levels of sharpness. A manager who has spent July coaching the squad’s supporting cast, rather than merely waiting for his stars, will know exactly who can be trusted while the big names are managed back to fitness.
The message from Copers Cope this morning is clear: the Sage era does not start when the World Cup ends. It starts today, with the players who are actually there and the manager who makes the most of an imperfect July will be the one smiling in September.
