- Crystal Palace beat Shakhtar Donetsk
- Oliver Glasner on reaching Conference League final
- Eagles face Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig
Oliver Glasner admitted he didn’t think Crystal Palace would be playing a European final when he opened up on a conversation with Steve Parish. The Austrian spoke after the Eagles beat Shakhtar Donetsk 2-1 (5-2 on aggregate) to reach the UEFA Conference League final.
Palace will face Rayo Vallecano in the final on May 27th in Leipzig. They advanced to their first-ever European final courtesy of a Pedrinho own goal and Ismaila Sarr’s ninth goal of the competition.
For Glasner, it puts him one step closer to winning a fourth trophy in as many full seasons as a manager. He guided the Eagles to the FA Cup last season and is bidding to become the club’s first coach to win a European trophy.
‘This is What You Can Achieve’ – Glasner
Glasner was full of joy after the win over Shakhtar and delved into how Palace have got this far. He delved into an exchange held with club chairman Parish ahead of tonights game.
The Austrian told TNT Sports:
“No, honestly, no I spoke to the chairman before because he always comes into my office when the players do their warm up. I said to him ‘did you think that we would ever play in a European semi-final here at Selhurst?’ and he said ‘no’. I said ‘honestly when we talked three years ago I didn’t think about it.’ This is what you can achieve.”
Glasner replaced Roy Hodgson in February 2024 and initially didn’t make the best of starts. But the 51-year-old soon got a grasp of English football and transformed the South London outfit.
The former Eintracht Frankfurt coach delivered the club it’s first-ever major trophy when they lifted the FA Cup last season. He is now close to achieving European ecstasy in his last hurrah before he bids farewell in June.
“It’s Massive” – Glasner on Final
Glasner looked emotional after being asked what it would mean to win the Conference League in his final act as Palace manager. He pointed out his extraordinary record of finals along with his decision to leave the club:
“It’s my fourth consecutive final in my fourth full season. It’s massive, it’s for me personally massive because for everybody who knows me when I announced to leave was more duty to work harder, to deliver as a manager, to support the players and the group. To make our fans proud.”
Glasner admitted that there have been “tough” times not just last year but this season too in the winter. He announced his departure in January and a large section of the fanbase weren’t too impressed.
It’s fair to say the relationship is well and truly back on track or even better than ever. Next up for the Austrian is a first-class ticket to Leipzig.
