Oliver Glasner unquestionably succeeded at Crystal Palace, but the Austrian never seemed to buy into the club’s DNA.
Over the years, Crystal Palace have become synonymous with exciting wingers who hug the touchline, attempt to take defenders on and consequently get fans up off their seats.
It started with Vince Hilaire and Jerry Murphy in the Team of the Eighties before the dynamic duo of Yannick Bolasie and Wilfried Zaha helped us earn promotion to the Premier League in the 2012/13 season.
However, as Glasner preferred full-backs in Tyrick Mitchell and Daniel Munoz to provide the width, there were no natural wingers to excite Crystal Palace fans, with the attackers rarely given licence to dribble.
As Pierre Sage oversaw a 5-1 win against Swindon Town in his first game, however, there was evidence to suggest the Frenchman will let his forwards be more adventurous.
Thoughts on the win over Swindon? 🤔
Joel Drakes-Thomas was absolutely fantastic ⭐️
The significance of Crystal Palace attempting 26 dribbles against Swindon Town
Yes, it may only have been a friendly. Yes, it was against a League Two outfit. However – as Sofascore shows – Crystal Palace attempted 26 dribbles against Ian Holloway’s side.
When you compare that tally to some games under Glasner, it speaks volumes.
For example, the 2-2 draw against Brentford back in May saw Crystal Palace attempt just 16 dribbles in comparison, which was fascinating considering it was a dead-rubber affair at the end of the season and players should have felt more comfortable to express themselves.
In the 2-1 loss against Arsenal to end the 2025/26 Premier League campaign, the Eagles only attempted 12 dribbles, and just nine in the UEFA Conference League final.
FBREF claim that Crystal Palace only attempted 18 dribbles per game in the Premier League last season too.
So, the fact Sage, who was without Adam Wharton due to injury, watched his side attempt substantially more take-ons with 26 attempts against Swindon Town in his first game should not be downplayed.
Only 42% of these dribbles were successful, mind you, but the attackers certainly looked to have been told to be more daring on the ball than Glasner would have typically allowed for.
The Frenchman seemed to give talents like Romain Esse, Joel Drakes-Thomas and Matheus Franca more freedom to express themselves, which the latter took full advantage of as he bagged a hat-trick.
Wing-backs are a part of Sage’s system too, but against Swindon Town, they appeared to stay back and feed the wingers more than we saw under Glasner, who wanted his wing-backs to push forward and overlap consistently.
It was also interesting to see Oscar Mingueza move inside the pitch from his right wing-back role more often than the Spaniard would overlap, which allowed Esse to have more time on the ball in dangerous areas throughout the opening 45 minutes.
Initial thoughts on Pierre Sage? 🤔
He can boast a 67.5% win ratio from 40 games at RC Lens 😍
If Sage manages to succeed at Crystal Palace and also buy into the club’s DNA of having bold, exciting wingers orchestrating the attack, the 47-year-old will end up being very popular in SE25.
