Crystal Palace Seek First Points in Fulham Clash
Crystal Palace head to Craven Cottage on Saturday still searching for a first Premier League point – and a first win – under new manager Pierre Sage.
Two games, two defeats, six goals conceded. It has been a brutal introduction for Sage. A 2–0 loss away to Everton on the opening weekend was followed by a chastening 4–1 home defeat to Manchester City, exposing a defence still trying to find its shape and an attack short of conviction.
The numbers sting. Palace have let in three goals per game so far, and their only strike this season came via an own goal. For a side already short on confidence, that lack of a genuine goalscorer on the scoresheet lingers over every attack.
Sage’s selection headache
If the results have been harsh, the team news does little to ease the pressure.
Jean-Philippe Mateta, the focal point of Palace’s forward line, is out for around three weeks with a hamstring injury. Losing your main striker when the goals have already dried up is the last thing any new manager needs.
Ismaïla Sarr is missing as well. A groin problem has kept him out of recent training sessions, coming on the back of a collapsed move to Liverpool that has left his immediate future on hold and his body unavailable.
At the back, there is no quick fix either. Chadi Riad remains a long-term absentee with a serious knee injury, depriving Sage of another defensive option at a time when his side are leaking chances and goals.
So Sage heads into the Fulham clash juggling a thin squad, a poor start, and a fanbase desperate for signs of life.
New faces ready to step in
The one shaft of light for Palace comes from their late transfer business.
Ben Chilwell, Honest Ahanor, Quinten Timber, and Darío Osorio have all trained with the first team and are eligible to feature at Craven Cottage. They arrive without the scars of the opening two defeats and with the chance to inject something different into a flat start.
Osorio, in particular, is being lined up for early minutes out wide. With Mateta and Sarr unavailable, Palace need pace, direct running and a bit of unpredictability in the final third. The Chilean winger could be thrown straight into the fray to give Sage a new angle in attack.
How Palace could line up
Sage is expected to stick with a back three and wing-backs as he searches for a structure that can both protect a vulnerable defence and give his side some width going forward.
Predicted Crystal Palace XI: Henderson; Canvot, Richards, Tomiyasu; Khalaili, Kamada, Wharton, Mitchell; McNeil, Larsen, Pino.
That setup leans heavily on energy in midfield and creativity from the flanks, asking the front three to share the burden in Mateta’s absence.
Kick-off details
Fulham vs Crystal Palace kicks off at 3pm BST on Saturday, 5 September at Craven Cottage.
The game falls under the 3pm blackout rule in the UK, so it will not be televised domestically.
Palace travel with no points, a patched-up squad and a manager still looking for his first foothold in English football. By full-time on Saturday, we’ll know if this is the start of a recovery – or the first sign of a long, anxious season.
