Crystal Palace chairman reveals why Ismaïla Sarr stayed despite Liverpool interest

Crystal Palace chairman Steve Parish says Liverpool’s offer for Ismaïla Sarr was not sufficient to persuade the club to sell the Senegal striker during the summer transfer window.

Sarr had told Palace he wanted to leave and attracted interest from Liverpool, who made an approach for the 29 year old. However, the London club rejected the offer and kept the former Olympique de Marseille forward.

Parish has now explained the thinking behind the decision, saying Palace were not prepared to sell one of their key players for a fee they considered too low.

“The situation regarding Ismaila is regrettable, but it wasn’t really our fault,” declared the Crystal Palace chairman.

Parish said the offer from Liverpool did not reflect the current market and suggested the circumstances made a deal impossible at the proposed price.

“A club (Liverpool) came forward, and given the size of their offer, they couldn’t realistically hope to complete the deal at that price point in the current market; moreover, they didn’t come back with another offer. If you sell players for 90 million pounds and want to offer us half that for their replacement, that’s your prerogative. I’m not criticizing anyone for that. But it’s not going to happen ,” he explained.

Palace’s decision meant Sarr remained at the club despite his wish to move elsewhere.

Parish acknowledged that the striker had wanted to leave but said the timing of Liverpool’s approach made the situation particularly difficult. The offer arrived only five days before the transfer window closed, leaving little time to negotiate a suitable deal or find a replacement.

“We can understand that Ismaila wanted to leave; if the situation hadn’t arisen five days before the transfer window closed and if the offer had been adequate, we would have tried to facilitate his transfer,” he added.

The Palace chairman also responded to comments made by Diomansy Kamara towards the end of the transfer window.

Kamara had made accusations concerning the club’s handling of Sarr’s situation, but Parish rejected those claims and criticised the way the matter had been discussed publicly.

“I don’t care what (Kamara) thinks about the accusations against us. If a club receives an offer for its top scorer five days before the end of the transfer window, the deal is bound to be difficult to finalize. To the agents, I would say that the best of them know how to manage the player’s expectations rather than blaming others. It’s up to them to secure an offer earlier. They are paid by the player and the club, and their role is to make things smooth for everyone. It’s in no one’s interest to spread unfounded accusations in the media.”

The comments from Parish provide Palace’s explanation for why Sarr stayed despite his desire to leave.

The chairman’s position is that the club would have been willing to consider a departure if an acceptable offer had arrived earlier in the window. Instead, with Liverpool’s proposal coming so late and Palace unwilling to accept the valuation offered, the transfer did not happen.

Sarr therefore remained with Crystal Palace after the deadline, while the disagreement surrounding his proposed move continued to generate discussion.