Tyrick Mitchell Shines as Crystal Palace Seek Momentum Under Sage

Tyrick Mitchell steps out of the shadows as Palace eye momentum under Sage

Crystal Palace arrive at Saturday’s meeting with Ipswich with something they have not felt often enough this year: a sense of lift. One Premier League win under Pierre Sage has finally landed, a 3-2 edge-of-the-seat victory at Fulham, and a place in the next round of the Carabao Cup has followed. Now comes the harder part – stringing results together in the league for the first time this calendar year.

Sage has not celebrated those wins in the usual chest-beating way. After the Fulham game, he cut an unusually generous figure, admitting he was “disappointed for the other team and the coach, they had opportunities too”. The same tone returned after Tuesday’s Cup success over Middlesbrough, when Palace again spent long spells without the ball but found a way to win.

He made a point of praising Boro, calling them “a really good team” and adding: “I want to congratulate them – the score is for us, but they played well.” It is an insight into the Frenchman’s approach: respect the opponent, own the result, and keep the focus on performance rather than noise.

The numbers behind those results tell a more jagged story. Palace’s defence has been leaking. Two or more goals conceded in nine straight league matches – an unwanted club record – is not the platform any head coach wants as he tries to bed in ideas. Yet, in west London last weekend, it was those same defenders who dragged the team over the line.

At Craven Cottage, Tyrick Mitchell stepped into a role few expected him to play. The left wing-back, more commonly associated with steady positioning than headline-grabbing surges, scored the first double of his career. His timing was sharp, his runs decisive, and Fulham never quite worked out how to track him once he sensed space.

When Mitchell’s afternoon ended, his replacement kept the story going. Ben Chilwell, on from the bench, struck the winner to complete a rare day in which Palace’s attacking edge came from deep. For a backline criticised for its vulnerability, it was a reminder that defenders can change matches at both ends.

Mitchell’s emergence as a more adventurous threat marks a clear shift from his time under Oliver Glasner. Then, he often had to hold his position, with Daniel Munoz given licence to raid down the opposite flank. Under Sage, the balance is tilting. Mitchell is being asked to step higher, to join attacks, to trust that the system will cover behind him.

That tweak has given Palace a new angle. They still concede too many chances, as Sage himself has implicitly acknowledged in his post-match reflections, but they now carry a different kind of menace from wide areas. When a previously conservative full-back starts scoring doubles, dressing rooms notice.

All of which feeds into the narrative around Ipswich’s visit. Newly promoted and already under pressure after two straight defeats, Town arrive hoping to avoid a third loss on the bounce. Palace, by contrast, are hunting something they have not managed all year: back-to-back Premier League wins.

The stakes are not title-race high, but they matter. For Sage, another victory would turn a promising week into a genuine launchpad. For Mitchell, it is another chance to prove that his breakout at Fulham was not a one-off, but the start of a new chapter in his Palace career.