​It’s a special match for Sage, as he returns to Lyon, where he was manager from November 2023 to January 2025.

​Despite leaving Lyon 21 months ago, the Frenchman reflected on what would be a personal match for him.

​I would say a little bit. I still have a house here, and when I get asked the question, ‘Where do I live?’, even though I’m in London at the moment, I still say that I live in Lyon.

“So, it’s a special moment. I think the last time that I was here was the 17th of May, so, yeah, it’s a special one.”

Sage additionally acclaimed the 3000 Crystal Palace supporters who had made the trip to France watch the Eagles play in Europe, saying it showed a strong bond between the club and its supporters.

​“I know there will be 3,000 tomorrow, and we are really happy and proud that they are with us and we can share this kind of moment.

“You know, the story of the club in European football is not too much; there’s not too much time.

“I just want to thank them before the game, because the result is something, the game is something, but they don’t choose to come for the result.

“They just choose to come to be with us, and that’s really good proof of love.”

Despite his time at Lyon, Sage wanted to put the emotion of the occasion behind him to achieve a good result.

“I cannot claim to know everything about the club, and obviously the Crystal Palace players don’t know everything about the club.

“So, we need to educate them in order to develop the game plan and tell them the game plan that we’re going to put against Lyon.

“I think it’s the same for the opposition team as well. You need to educate your players and tell your players how you’re going to play against a certain opposition.

“Of course, there’s a bit of emotion in there in terms of what happened in the past at the club, in the city, and being back here.

“You know, the most important thing, it’s a football game, and we’ll try to put on a good result and get the best result tomorrow.”

The Frenchman also confirmed that Jean-Philippe Mateta and Dean Henderson were just a couple of the names to be missing from the trip to Lyon.

“JP Mateta will not be here. Dean Henderson too. [Takehiro] Tomiyasu too. Ben Chilwell too, and Chadi [Riad] for sure, and all the players off the list [in the Europa League squad]. If not, everybody is here.”