What's gone so wrong so quickly at Crystal Palace?

Pierre Sage faces mounting pressure at Crystal Palace, currently languishing in the Premier League relegation zone with the division’s worst defence. The 47-year-old manager is now the second-favourite to be the next managerial casualty in the top flight. Palace could finish bottom of the table if they are defeated by Liverpool on Sunday.

The match kicks off at 2pm, with coverage on Sky Sports Main Event from 12.30pm.

Sage’s tenure at Selhurst Park has been marked by a stark contrast to his previous success. Last May, he celebrated the Coupe de France trophy as RC Lens’s victorious manager. He turned to his staff and said: “Do you realise where we are?

Lens had just secured their first French Cup title in history.

The French club also finished second in Ligue 1, their joint-best league position in over two decades. This achievement came in Sage’s first season in charge. He had managed only 56 professional games prior to joining the club.

He became a rising star in French football almost overnight.

Less than six months later, the situation has deteriorated significantly. The Premier League’s lure tempted him to the Crystal Palace dugout in July. He now finds himself in a precarious position.

His team has plummeted like a stone in the standings.

Sage’s position is in inevitable jeopardy before he has managed 10 league games in England. Palace lost their last three league games without scoring. They conceded nine times during that period.

The defeat at Tottenham on Saturday night saw them fall two goals behind.

Despite the poor results, there was no concerted outpouring of frustration from the away end. The fans understand the wider problems at Selhurst Park. These issues will remain even if Sage exits the club.

He did not hold back in his assessment of the situation.

“It’s a disaster,” he told Sky Sports. The damage caused by the departures of Daniel Munoz and Maxence Lacroix last summer is evident. Replacements have struggled to emulate their quality.

The absence of Ismaila Sarr has also been harshly felt.

Sarr’s 21-goal haul last season has left a void. His absence following a recurrence of a groin injury is significant. Adam Wharton has also become a shadow of his previous self in three months.

Jean-Philippe Mateta got himself sent off 13 minutes into his second Premier League start since August.

Mateta will now miss the next three games. Sage may be well advised to avoid walking under any ladders. His luck seems to be out.

Pertinent questions remain regarding Palace’s rationale for hiring him. His first problem may have dropped into his in-tray long before he took the job.

Marc Guehi’s sale to Manchester City in mid-January saw Palace ship 26 goals in their remaining 16 games. That rate was even more porous than Palace’s defence this season. It was clear a rebuild was necessary.

Solid sums were banked for Guehi and Eberechi Eze across the previous 12 months.

The departures of Munoz and Lacroix made a rebuild even more essential. This proved director of football Matt Hobbs’ first real test since succeeding Dougie Freedman. The results have been mixed at best.

Anan Khalaili, Munoz’s replacement, is creating chances at barely half the rate of the Colombian.

Loanee centre-back Axel Disasi has been unable to match Lacroix’s dominance in defence. He has won only 54 per cent of his aerial duels. This has not helped with shipping five goals from set-pieces already.

That is a record only beaten by his parent club Chelsea.

Replacing half a team’s worth of talent in Eze, Guehi, Munoz, Lacroix and Michael Olise was never going to be easy. Palace look on enviously as old rivals Brighton thrive despite having their best players picked off. It is hard to argue any new arrival at Selhurst Park has come close to filling their predecessor’s shoes bar Jeremy Pino.

Sage has been robbed of Palace’s most profitable attacking outlet from last season. Sarr, who scored 21 goals from 45 games, is struck down by a recurrence of a groin injury. Palace’s league goals dried up by almost half to just 0.71 a game when he was unavailable last season.

Even then, Mateta still managed to plunder 12 as their top league goalscorer. The pair have been on the pitch for a combined total of just 183 league minutes from a possible 1,170 under the new head coach. Wharton should be Palace’s best player regardless.

Sarr’s availability and the absence of Munoz has had a knock-on effect on him. Few players are waiting for early balls forward when he is in possession. His lack of rhythm may have affected his out-of-possession game too.

Over the previous two seasons, Wharton won the ball back in the middle third more than three times a game on average.

Now his tally sits barely above one. The 22-year-old would likely have thrived in Sage’s Lens system last year. That system was built around throttling opponents, high turnovers and rapid transitions.

His ability to pick a pass and spot a runner would have provided a dangerous weapon.