adminPierre Sage has warned summer signings Dwight McNeil and Evann Guessand that they need to raise their performances after leaving them out of Crystal Palace’s squad for Saturday’s 3-2 Premier League win at Fulham.
The attacking pair were omitted from the matchday squad at Craven Cottage after Sage was unhappy with their substitute displays in the 4-1 home defeat to Manchester City eight days earlier.
A Tyrick Mitchell brace and a Ben Chilwell winner handed the Frenchman his first victory in charge. Sage acknowledged that McNeil and Guessand were disappointed by his decision, but gave them a chance to return for Palace’s Carabao Cup third-round meeting with Middlesbrough on Tuesday.
“It’s my decision, a sports decision, and sometimes players have to be shaken to come back and regain their level,” said Sage.
“At the end, it’s only one game. With a few games, everybody is excited with the situation – what’s happened? Is there a problem? Or something like this.
It’s like this: they just have to take the information, to change things during the session, because they have the opportunity to show every week, and maybe they will come back with us on Tuesday.”
Sage will assess the squad’s fitness before the Middlesbrough clash, with a number of players left “really tired” after the London derby triumph.
Palace have enjoyed strong cup campaigns over the past two seasons, lifting the FA Cup in 2025 before subsequently winning the Community Shield and Conference League trophy last season.
Sage will be hoping to guide Palace to Carabao Cup success this term after taking over from Oliver Glasner in the summer, although his side face a difficult test against Championship promotion contenders Middlesbrough, with a place in the last 16 at stake.
Middlesbrough currently occupy second place in the Championship after collecting 10 points from their first five fixtures. They are only one point behind early leaders Swansea in the standings.
Meanwhile, Palace have climbed to 13th in the Premier League after securing their first points of the campaign at Fulham, having previously suffered defeats against Everton and Manchester City. They will now look to maintain that momentum with another cup victory.
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