Crystal Palace are determined to hold on to their best players this summer after confirming the appointment of Pierre Sage as their manager, with the Frenchman to be backed in the transfer market to prepare for their Europa League campaign.<\/p>\n
Sage has signed a three-year contract to replace Oliver Glasner, having led Lens to second place in Ligue 1<\/a> last season and won the French Cup. He emerged as Palace\u2019s preferred candidate after they missed out on Andoni Iraola and it is understood that the 47-year-old\u2019s preference to play a 3-4-2-1 system was a key factor in his appointment.<\/p>\n Quick GuideHow do I sign up for sport breaking news alerts?Show<\/p>\n In the Guardian app, tap the Profile settings button at the top right, then select Notifications. Turn on sport notifications.<\/p>\n If you already have the Guardian app, make sure you\u2019re on the most recent version.<\/p>\n If you don’t have the Guardian app, download it from the\u00a0iOS App Store<\/a>\u00a0on iPhone or the\u00a0Google Play store<\/a>\u00a0on Android by searching for ‘The Guardian’.<\/p>\n Thank you for your feedback.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s amazing to be here at Crystal Palace,\u201d Sage said. \u201cI am excited by the history of the club, and by recent seasons. Oliver Glasner achieved some amazing things, and now I have to do the same. That\u2019s why we come here with a lot of ambition. The dynamic here is really positive, and we are in this mindset too. We won last year \u2013and we want to continue in this way, in a new club, a new project, but with a lot of winning habits.\u201d<\/p>\n Sage, who will be joined by his assistant from Lens, Jamal Alioui, a former Morocco defender, is believed to have been offered assurances by Palace\u2019s co-chair, Steve Parish, that he will be able to strengthen the squad. They are in the market for a central midfielder and have held talks with Middlesbrough over Hayden Hackney, although Everton are also interested<\/a> in the England Under-21 player.<\/p>\n Palace are also believed got be targeting a central defender to provide extra cover for their second European campaign after winning the Conference League under Glasner last month. But they could face a fight to keep hold of Maxence Lacroix, who is part of France\u2019s World Cup squad and is thought to have interest from clubs including Liverpool and Manchester United. Adam Wharton, Daniel Mu\u00f1oz and Isma\u00efla Sarr are also expected to attract interest, with Liverpool heavily tracking Wharton despite the midfielder missing out on the World Cup.<\/p>\n Palace confirmed last week that they had offered Daichi Kamada a new deal but the Japan midfielder, who scored against the Netherlands<\/a> on Sunday, has yet to commit his future. A new contract has also been on the table for Jean-Philippe Mateta since his January move to Milan broke down but the France striker would be sold if another club meet their valuation of the 28-year-old.<\/p>\n