Close pal managed to fall down (8)
I believe the answer is:
collapse
'fall down' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'close pal managed' is the wordplay.
'managed' indicates anagramming the letters.
'close'+'pal'='closepal'
'closepal' anagrammed gives 'COLLAPSE'.
'to' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for collapse that I've seen before include "Faint and fall" , "Disintegration" , "Break down - fall" , "Founder" , "Fall down or cave in" .)