Glasner's long Palace goodbye sets up 'perfect' finale

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Crystal Palace will face Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final on 27 May Crystal Palace desperately did not want to be in the Conference League - now they are one game from winning it and creating more club history. On one of the greatest nights a passionate and raucous Selhurst Park has seen, the Eagles beat Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 to seal a 5-2 aggregate success in the semi-finals. Having won the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025 at Wembley, their remarkable European journey started in a Swiss courtroom, unsuccessfully appealing their demotion into the Conference League from the second-tier Europa League. But since then, Palace have not looked back. They have travelled to Norway, Poland, France, Republic of Ireland, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cyprus, Italy and back to Poland, with one last stop to come - the final in Germany. And should Palace lift the trophy on Wednesday, 27 May, in Leipzig against Spanish side Rayo Vallecano, who defeated Gary O'Neil's Strasbourg 2-0 on aggregate in their semi-final, it would complete an unprecedented phase of success for the club. Boss Oliver Glasner, who will leave in the summer having only been appointed in February 2024, is on the verge of a third trophy in a remarkable period. Even the 51-year-old could not believe what has been achieved. "I spoke to the chairman before the match, he always comes into my office," said Glasner afterwards. "I said, 'do you ever think we would be playing in the semi-final of a European competition?' He said 'no'. "I said, 'when we talked for the first time three years ago, I didn't think about it'. This is what you achieve if you work hard and stick together in tough moments - and we have had a few. When you stick together in difficult moments, you get the reward." Crystal Palace beat Shakhtar to reach Conference League final Electric atmosphere at Selhurst ParkImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Ismaila Sarr scored his ninth goal of the Conference League, to become the top scorer in the competition "I really enjoy the European nights at Selhurst," added the Austrian. "We had to grow into the competition and the fans had to grow. If you look when we started against Larnaca, the level of excitement increased and increased." At Selhurst Park on Thursday it reached fever pitch. While the Shakhtar fans bounced in one corner, the home supporters played their part in creating a fantastic atmosphere, with everyone clapping and cheering. Never before has the club anthem of 'Glad All Over' been sung louder, with added pyrotechnics enhancing the party mood further. "It was a fantastic atmosphere and a great night at Selhurst," added Glasner. "It's a huge achievement and great credit to the players, everybody could see how good Shakhtar are." Goalkeeper and captain Dean Henderson summed up the mood as he said: "It's incredible for the football club. You see the connection between the players and the supporters, it's fantastic. It's unbelievable. "When you come in from a game like that [the FA Cup final], it gives you confidence and makes you hungry. We've got an ambitious group of players as well. "It's pretty incredible, honestly, to get into a European competition with Crystal Palace, never mind make the final. We've got to deliver something special. We need to get back what we deserve as well [Europa League qualification]." Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Goalkeeper Dean Henderson grabbed a megaphone from the fans to celebrate with them after the game Since Palace were formed in 1905, they have found trophies hard to come by. Their only success of merit was in 1991 when Ian Wright scored twice in a 4-1 Wembley final win over Everton to win the Zenith Data Systems Cup. But Eagles fans have now had 12 unforgettable months. Eberechi Eze's goal gave them a 1-0 win over Manchester City for a first FA Cup success, before the Community Shield followed with a penalty shootout victory over reigning Premier League champions Liverpool. That FA Cup glory should have taken Palace into the Europa League, but that was quickly taken away. The club were punished by Uefa for breaching multi-club ownership rules as American businessman John Textor, who owned a 43% stake in Palace until he sold it in June, was also the majority owner of Lyon, another Europa League qualifier. Lyon finished higher domestically so they got the Europa League spot, with Palace demoted to the third-tier Conference League and Nottingham Forest taking the Eagles' place. They appealed but, despite chairman Steve Parish attending an eight-hour legal case at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Switzerland, they lost. However, 16 games across the continent later, Palace are now in their first European final, chasing more history, with special cheers from the fans reserved for the news that Forest had lost 4-0 to Aston Villa on Thursday to end their own run in the Europa League. The

Glasner's long Palace goodbye sets up 'perfect' finale

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Glasner's long Palace goodbye sets up 'perfect' finale

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