Crystal Palace Faces Crisis: Keeping Ismaila Sarr

Crystal Palace have already made the worst possible start to their season. Now they’re fighting to avoid an even bigger blow.

Ismaila Sarr, the electric winger who has become the symbol of Palace’s recent rise, is pushing for a move to Liverpool before the transfer window shuts. Palace don’t want to sell. Ally McCoist thinks they simply can’t.

“It would be a disaster for Palace”

Speaking on talkSPORT Breakfast, McCoist urged Palace to dig in and resist Liverpool’s interest, even with the clock ticking on deadline day.

"I don't see it happening," he said. "I'm not sure he's exactly what Liverpool need. I just think it would be a disaster for Palace if they lost him."

Disaster is a strong word. In this case, it feels about right.

Sarr still has three years left on his contract, but his actions suggest his mind is already drifting north. The 26-year-old has wiped all Crystal Palace-related content from his Instagram, a modern transfer siren if ever there was one. He wants Liverpool. Liverpool see him as the ideal replacement for Cody Gakpo, who is being courted by Manchester City.

Palace, for now, are standing firm. No price, no negotiation, not this late in the window. That’s the line from the club. McCoist wants them to hold it.

Liverpool’s looming logjam

McCoist also questioned what Sarr’s arrival would do to Andoni Iraola’s already crowded forward line at Anfield.

He believes signing Sarr would hand the Liverpool boss a “serious headache” when it comes to selection. And that puzzle is about to get even more complex.

Liverpool are closing in on Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth up to £123million. One big attacking signing is a statement. Two, in the same window, turns the front line into a jigsaw with too many pieces.

Where would Sarr fit? Who misses out? Those are questions Iraola would welcome in terms of quality, but they are exactly the sort of dilemmas that can unsettle a dressing room if not handled perfectly.

Not everyone on talkSPORT agreed with McCoist’s scepticism.

Stelling backs Sarr to shine at Anfield

Breakfast co-host Jeff Stelling took the opposite view. He can see Sarr thriving in red.

"I think he'd do well at Liverpool," Stelling said. "I didn't expect him to kick on the way he did at Palace, but he really has."

The numbers back that up. Since arriving from Marseille in August 2024, Sarr has scored 33 goals and laid on 10 assists for Palace. Those contributions helped drive the club to an FA Cup triumph and a UEFA Conference League win, the most decorated spell in their modern history.

This isn’t just a winger with pace. This is Palace’s cutting edge, their big-game threat, their proof that they can punch above their weight and bring silverware to south London.

Right now, though, he’s not even on the pitch.

Palace wobbling without their talisman

Sarr has yet to feature this season because of a groin injury, and Palace are feeling his absence. Pierre Sage has watched his side lose both of their opening Premier League fixtures: 2–0 to Everton, then 4–1 against Manchester City.

Two games, zero points, four goals conceded in one night at the Etihad. Palace are one of four clubs still pointless, already glancing nervously at the wrong end of the table.

That is the backdrop to this transfer tug-of-war. A team trying to find its feet, a manager trying to impose his ideas, and in the middle of it all, their star forward eyeing the exit.

Lose Sarr now and Sage’s job becomes significantly harder. The system, the threat on the counter, the belief in the stands – all of it takes a hit.

A pivotal week for Palace

On Saturday, Palace travel to Fulham chasing their first win of the campaign. It’s early, but it already feels like a marker. Are they a side in transition who will settle and climb, or one that could get dragged into a long, anxious season?

That question becomes far more uncomfortable if Sarr walks out the door before the window closes.

For Palace, this isn’t just about a transfer fee or a contract. It’s about identity, ambition, and whether they can convince their best players that the club’s future is worth staying for.

McCoist has made his stance clear. Palace must pull out all the stops to keep Ismaila Sarr.

The real test now is whether the club can match that conviction when Liverpool come calling.