Thomas Frank odds suspended as Crystal Palace hunt replacement for sacked Pierre Sage

Crystal Palace have sacked manager Pierre Sage after a fourth consecutive defeat left the club rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table. The Frenchman, who joined from Lyon in the summer on a three-year contract to replace Oliver Glasner, managed only seven points from 16 games across all competitions before the club pulled the plug.

Sage’s dismissal came within hours of Manchester United parting ways with Michael Carrick, making him the second Premier League managerial casualty of the season. His tenure proved brief and difficult: Palace sold several key players last summer, including Maxence Lacroix, Brennan Johnson, and Daniel Munoz, while forwards Jean-Philippe Mateta and Ismaila Sarr have both been sidelined through injury.

Thomas Frank has emerged as the clear frontrunner to succeed Sage, with betting markets suspending odds on the Dane after he was priced as short as 1/4 favourite. Frank has been out of management since Tottenham dismissed him in February, ending an eight-month absence from the top flight. His track record at Brentford — where he built a mid-table Premier League side from Championship stock — is widely cited as evidence of what he could bring to Selhurst Park.

Should Frank take the role, his immediate priority would be a relegation battle. Palace face Frank Lampard’s Coventry City on Saturday 21 November, giving any incoming head coach little time to prepare.

Sean Dyche is also in contention at odds of 6/1. The former Burnley and Everton manager has a well-established reputation for keeping clubs in the Premier League, steering Burnley through six consecutive top-flight seasons before his 2022 dismissal and then keeping Everton up in 2023. Dyche has also twice won promotion from the Championship with Burnley, offering Palace both short-term survival credentials and longer-term experience.

Danish coach Jens Berthel Askou has also been reported as a candidate, with bookmakers pricing him at 6/1. Askou previously managed Motherwell before taking charge of Toulouse, where he has made a steady start in Ligue 1.

Palace are yet to confirm their next appointment, but the suspension of odds on Frank points strongly towards a decision being close.