Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner says he wants a “perfect ending” to his reign at the club by leading the Eagles to Europa Conference League glory against Rayo Vallecano on Wednesday.
The Austrian will take charge of Palace for the final time in Leipzig after overseeing the most successful period in the club’s history since arriving in 2024.
Glasner guided Palace to the first major trophy in their 120-year history after winning the FA Cup during his first full season at Selhurst Park.
He followed that success by beating Liverpool in the Community Shield at the start of the current campaign and now stands one game away from delivering the club’s first European trophy.
Victory would also send Palace into next season’s Europa League, one year after UEFA stripped the club of their previous qualification spot because of multi-club ownership regulations.
Glasner announced in January that he would leave Palace at the end of the season following disagreements over the club’s transfer policy.
Despite a difficult spell that saw Palace go 12 matches without a win before February, chairman Steve Parish kept faith with the former Eintracht Frankfurt coach.
That decision has now taken Palace to their first European final.
Glasner also has a strong record in knockout football after winning the Europa League with Frankfurt in 2022 and reaching the German Cup final a year later.
Speaking with UEFA on Monday, Glasner said: “I would always feel I had failed if the team had dropped off after my announcement, because I told them: ‘You don’t need to play for a manager.’”
He said: “It would be a perfect ending.
“When you watch a movie, when you read a book, you always hope that there is a happy ending.”
The Palace boss added: “To end this more than two-year journey with another trophy, with the first European trophy in Crystal Palace’s history, that would be incredible.”
Rayo Vallecano will also play their first European final after edging past Strasbourg in the semi-finals.
The Spanish side finished the La Liga season one point behind Getafe but can still secure Europa League football by beating Palace.
Glasner acknowledged the threat posed by the Madrid club and insisted they deserved their place in the final.
He said: “All four teams that play the semi-finals deserve to play the final because they have done so well in the competition, and Vallecano are the same.”
The Austrian added: “They are very quick, playing in transition, with quick wingers, always able to score goals.
“They don’t concede many.”
The Leipzig final now gives Palace the chance to cap a historic era with another first.
After ending their long wait for major silverware with last season’s FA Cup win, Palace are now one match away from a first European title before Glasner’s exit.
