Oliver Glasner: Outgoing Crystal Palace boss labelled ‘one of the best’ after steering club to UEFA Conference League glory - 'He's getting a statue'

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Glenn Hoddle and Joleon Lescott hailed the "incredible" work of Oliver Glasner at Crystal Palace as the Austrian added a third trophy in 12 months to sign off from his time at Selhurst Park.

Watch FULL interview as Glasner closes chapter on Crystal Palace career

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The Eagles were favourites heading into Wednesday's UEFA Conference League final against Rayo Vallecano, but dealt with the pressure to prevail 1-0 in Leipzig thanks to Jean-Philippe Mateta's instinctive finish after 51 minutes.

Following a cagey and goalless first half, it was fitting that it should be Mateta - a man who was close to leaving Palace in the January transfer window - who broke the deadlock and sent the club on its way to a first European trophy.

When asked if Glasner should have a statue built of him outside of Selhust Park, Lescott told TNT Sports: "Yeah, why not? I don't know what the criteria is to get a statue, but you can't be that far away.

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"You can't be that far away from getting that after winning an FA Cup and a European trophy. Why not?"

Hoddle added: "Wind yourself back ten years ago and say Crystal Palace were going to win a European trophy, then you win the FA Cup.

"You'd be going, 'no chance'. He deserves a statue. Come on, let's be fair. I don't care if he doesn't want it. He's getting one. This is justice. They should have been in the Europa League, and now they have qualified for it next year.

"He probably doesn't get the credit he deserves for the way they play and the style, but he's a winner. He allows them to win. He asks players to do things they're capable of. He doesn't try and complicate it in many ways. He just allows them to play freely.

"He'll always have a place back at Palace whenever he wants to go back there. He could go back there as manager one day, he's young enough. Listening to him, I want to put my boots back on. I want to play for him.

"I bet he's a hard taskmaster at the right time, but then he's got this nice humility about him. Good luck to him, he's done a fabulous job and wherever he ends up, he's going to be successful.

"They're now going to play in the Europa League next year and that is an amazing place to be leaving this football club. You couldn't do much more, could you?

"Apart from maybe get the Champions League or win the Premier League, which is a dream still for them. Where he picked Palace up compared to where he's taken them is quite incredible."

Highlights: Palace clinch European glory in perfect farewell for Glasner

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Glasner: Palace are now where they should be

This was the perfect farewell for Glasner, who arrived as Roy Hodgson's replacement in February 2024.

The 51-year-old, who won the Europa League with Frankfurt in 2022, has overseen a remarkable period in the south London club's history, winning the Emirates FA Cup and FA Community Shield last year.

But at the start of 2026, things looked like they would unravel when Marc Guehi was sold to Manchester City not long after holders Palace were dumped out of the FA Cup by non-league Macclesfield Town.

Glasner expressed his frustration at seeing another key player heading for the exit, following the departures of Michael Olise and Eberechi Eze, and it was then announced he would be leaving at the end of the season.

Glasner pulls out trademark belly slide in wild Conference League celebrations

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But, rather than allowing his reign to meander towards a dissatisfying conclusion, Glasner has defied the odds to mastermind a second major trophy in the space of just over 12 months.

"I can't even believe that this was the last game," Glasner told TNT Sports. "But yes, I took this decision, and I think 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 deserve after winning the FA Cup', that's the Europa League. So I think now it's a one-year delay. The club, the fans, the players did get what they deserved after winning the Conference League. So sometimes, OK, you have to take a round trip, and now we are there. Crystal Palace is where they should be.

"I see myself as part of the group. As a manager, you cannot do anything alone. You need great staff and you especially need great players and people. This is what this group is. They always stick together and work hard. Since day one, we have created the mindset that everything is possible if you work hard.

"In the end, it's the players' responsibility to take advantage of everything you get offered. On Monday, I think it was 34 degrees in London - I think I left at 17:00, JP [Mateta] and Tyrick Mitchell had just come back from the Cryo chamber. That shows the mindset of the players; they are investing so much and that is why we can lift another trophy."

Initially destined for the Europa League after their impressive domestic campaign, Palace were instead reassigned to the third-tier Conference League following UEFA's enforcement of multi-club ownership regulations.

What could have been perceived as a demotion became an opportunity embraced wholeheartedly by Glasner’s side, who transformed an unexpected detour into the most memorable European journey in the club's history.

Their defining moment arrived six minutes after half-time. Adam Wharton's drive from the edge of the area was spilled by Augusto Batalla and Mateta reacted quickest, steering the rebound home from close range to give Palace the lead against Rayo Vallecano.

BOOM! Mateta nets opener in final as Crystal Palace fans go wild

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Palace came close to doubling their lead when Yeremy Pino rattled both posts with a free-kick moments later, while Mateta forced another excellent save from Batalla as Glasner's men searched for a decisive second goal. In the end, they did not require it.

One strike proved enough to secure only the second major trophy in Palace’s 120-year history - and the greatest night the club has known on the European stage.

In Glasner's 121 matches in charge, the Austrian won 51 games and lost just 34 at a win percentage of 42.1%. The standout statistic, however, was the three trophies he claimed.

Former Palace defender Joel Ward told TNT Sports: "He's changed the way this club thinks. He's given the players and the fans the opportunity to dream. That hope started with him. He came in and challenged the mindset of the players, the leadership.

"He wanted to push and take this group to the next level. For him now, he personally wants to challenge himself at the next level and kick on. I'm sure there will be offers for him to go and do that. I want to wish him all the best because he's given this club so much, and more than we could ever have asked for."

'I feel FANTASTIC' - Mateta's hilarious reaction to Palace's European triumph

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This was Palace's 60th game in all competitions this season, and they were without defender Chris Richards, who failed to recover from an injury sustained in the recent 2-2 draw at Brentford.

Wharton was declared fit after hobbling off during last Sunday's final Premier League of the campaign against Arsenal, and he was an influential presence throughout in midfield.

A year ago, following the FA Cup final victory over Manchester City, Wharton was unable to join in the celebrations after leaving the pitch with concussion.

Having missed out on Thomas Tuchel's England World Cup squad, the former Blackburn midfielder admitted he was ready to fully immerse himself in the Palace celebrations this time - but only once he had carried out a routine drugs test at full-time.

Wharton told TNT Sports: "I missed out on the FA Cup celebrations last year, so I'm definitely going to make up for it this year, 100%. You can't put the feeling into words. It's incredible. You can see what it means for south London. Just unbelievable.

'Ruins my party' - Wharton on why Palace celebrations will be put on hold

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"[The celebrations] are going to be big. I have got two celebrations to catch up on. I've got doping unfortunately, which ruins my party a little bit, but hopefully, I can get that done quickly and get on the beers!"

Reflecting on Glasner's influence, Wharton added: "The difference he has made in two and a half years is incredible. Three trophies for Palace, the first three in the history of the club. First European competition and winning it. Unbelievable.

"He has got to be one of the best managers Palace have ever had. He has made a massive difference for how the club looks at competitions. We are not just looking to stay in the Premier League and be in Europe, we are looking to win it and be as high as possible."

Parish: Sometimes, the good guys win

Place supporters beamed with delight, danced and sang long into the night inside Leipzig’s Red Bull Arena, while thousands more flooded the city’s streets in celebration.

Back in south London, fans gathered at Selhurst Park watched history unfold on giant screens, sharing in a night that will live forever in the club's folklore.

Club chairman Steve Parish told TNT Sports: "It's never been better. Even to be in Europe, travelling around Europe, Strasbourg, Krakow, but then to come and win it is just incredible.

'Sometimes the good guys win' - Parish hails Palace's European title

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"It's not really sunk in. It's an incredible achievement, the players, the staff, all the ups and downs we've had in the season. It's brilliant to get to this point and getting into the Europa League, where we deserve to be in the end. It just shows you, sometimes the good guys win.

Just surviving in the Premier League is difficult, but to win the FA Cup, the Community Shield and to win the Conference League, a European trophy at the first time of asking is an incredible achievement which means everything. When I came to the club, I never thought we'd play in Europe let alone win a trophy so all of our dreams have come true.

"We've now had a taste of it, and we want to keep it going. We have gone up a level and we have got to try and stay there. We will have a week to celebrate and then work hard in the summer."

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