Glasner dedicates Conference League trophy to Palace players
Crystal Palace coach Oliver Glasner has dedicated the Europa Conference League trophy to the players, saying they deserve all the credit for ending the season with another trophy.
Phillipe Mateta scored the only goal for Crystal Palace to lead them to a 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano in the final in Leipzig on Wednesday for their first-ever European trophy.
The club will now play in the Europa League next season following their Conference League triumph.
The encounter was Glasner’s final game in charge of the club after announcing his exit in January following the departure of former captain Marc Guehi to Man City.
The Austrian manager is confident that he is leaving Crystal Palace where they belong while showering praises on the players.
Glasner said: “I can’t even believe this was my last game. I made this decision [to leave Palace]. It’s a good chapter to read in the Crystal Palace book, but other chapters will follow. I said to the players, get now what you deserved after winning the FA Cup.
“It [Europa League] was one year delayed. The club, fans and players got what they deserve. Sometimes, you have to take a roundabout way, and now Crystal Palace is where they should be.”
Glasner has now led the club to three trophies in his short spell, he attributed the success to the players.
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He said: “The best magician couldn’t work without the players.
“I just guided this group of players and the staff and I supported them and I said, ‘Really, this isn’t because it’s my 100% conviction’ I can’t do anything [without the players],” he told reporters. “I could be the best magician [but] that wouldn’t work without the players.
“And so it’s all the players deserve all the credit because they have to listen, they have to trust me and myself and the staff, of course.
“They have to work very hard and I think every player will tell you that I’m very demanding. So if things don’t go how I think they should go, or if players probably drop the standard by one or 2%, I can’t accept it.”
Crystal Palace are the third English team to win the Europa Conference League trophy since its Inception following the footsteps of West Ham and Chelsea.
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What You Need To Know About The 2025-26 Europa Conference League
This was the second UEFA Conference League played under a new format involving a 36-team league phase.
The new format also did not allow teams to transfer from the Europa League to the Conference League from the league phase onwards.
A total of 164 teams from 54 of the 55 UEFA member associations participated in the 2025–26 UEFA Conference League.
The association ranking based on the UEFA association coefficients was used to determine the number of participating teams for each association.
Crystal Palace forward Ismailla Sarr finished as the competition’s top scorer with nine goals.
