There’s an ironic prize on offer if Crystal Palace can beat Rayo Vallecano in the Conference League final on Wednesday: A spot in the competition Palace originally should have been playing in anyway.
A season which began with Palace in court appealing in vain against demotion from the Europa League ends with a chance to win its first-ever European trophy in the competition it didn’t want to play in. The winner gets a Europa League place for 2026-27.
It’s the last game at Palace for Oliver Glasner, the club’s most successful coach, before he leaves at the end of the season.
If Palace wins, “then they play European football in the Europa League next year, and then they get next year what we should have got this year,” Glasner said Tuesday.
“I would like to watch on TV that they start the Europa League with the desire and the confidence that they can win the Europa League as well. This would make me really happy.”
Spain’s Rayo fought its way to the final despite having a season marred by a fan boycott and a simmering feud between the supporters and the club president.
Stepping out of the shadows
Palace and Rayo are usually in the shadow of more successful neighbors. On Wednesday, they get the European spotlight to themselves. Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena is an unlikely corporate setting for two vibrant fan bases.
Far from the glamor of Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, Rayo is the Spanish capital’s third team, backed by passionate fans from a working-class neighborhood.
Pirate imagery and left-wing politics make Rayo stand out, while fans even boycotted a game — which turned out to be a stunning 3-0 upset of Atletico — in protest at the club president, while the team briefly moved out of its stadium because the field was unfit for play.
The FA Cup win last season which qualified Palace for European competition was the first-ever major trophy for the south London team. After hosting Arsenal’s Premier League title party Saturday, now’s the chance for a party of their own.
Under Glasner, Palace has made a habit of outperforming bigger London rivals with a fraction of the budget, even if it often means saying goodbye to key players when better offers come along.
The dispute over ownership — which put Palace in the Conference League in the first place — has brought the club fines all season long as fans continued to insult governing body UEFA.
Team news
Palace had a boost Tuesday with midfielder Adam Wharton and U.S. defender Chris Richards both back in training ahead of the final, but Glasner didn’t guarantee whether they could start. Torn ankle ligaments could leave Richards weighing up how to much to risk his fitness ahead of the World Cup.
“The positive thing is that they could make the training without big issues,” Glasner said. “Of course they still have pain but I think many players are feeling some pain after such a long season. Everybody wants to participate, but the final decision will be taken tomorrow.”
Rayo attacking midfielder Isi Palazón could be fresh for the final because he hasn’t played since the semifinal win over Strasbourg due to a suspension in the Spanish league for confronting a referee. He scored two vital goals in the 4-3 aggregate win over Greece’s AEK Athens in the quarterfinals.
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