Pierre Sage’s position as Crystal Palace head coach is under increasing scrutiny after Liverpool condemned the Eagles to a fourth successive Premier League defeat at Selhurst Park.
Palace remain bottom of the table, with only seven points from a possible 30 since Sage replaced Oliver Glasner in the summer.
Liverpool took advantage of the hosts’ missed chances to secure a comfortable victory, although Palace had opportunities to make the contest closer. Alexis Mac Allister opened the scoring in the 40th minute with an excellent header after a well-worked free-kick routine.
Florian Wirtz doubled Liverpool’s advantage 14 minutes after half-time, finishing neatly after being found by Bradley Barcola.
Alexander Isak had made little impact for much of the match but delivered late in the game, calmly scoring Liverpool’s third in the 89th minute. It was his seventh league goal of the season.
Palace were awarded a penalty in the final moments after Milos Kerkez was penalised, and Eddie Nketiah converted with the last kick of the match to give the home side a consolation.
The atmosphere inside Selhurst Park was subdued from the outset, with Palace forced on to the back foot during the opening stages.
The home supporters were briefly encouraged when Yeremy Pino’s close-range effort struck the Liverpool crossbar following a Palace attack.
Despite dominating possession early on, Liverpool created few clear openings before taking the lead. Palace thought they had gone ahead when Jorgen Strand Larsen found the net, but the goal was ruled out for offside.
The hosts continued to threaten and created enough chances to score before Nketiah’s stoppage-time penalty. Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker was required to make six saves during the game.
Liverpool had arrived in south London after an underwhelming midweek European defeat by Fenerbahce, but this result lifted them to fourth in the Premier League.
The Reds remain nine points behind leaders Arsenal, while Palace’s sequence of four consecutive league losses has increased the scrutiny on Sage’s future.
