CRYSTAL PALACE SCRAPE INTO CONFERENCE LEAGUE GROUP STAGE AFTER GOALLESS DRAW IN NORWAY
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Crystal Palace sealed their place in the UEFA Conference League group stage with a hard-fought goalless draw against Fredrikstad in Norway on Thursday, progressing 1-0 on aggregate.
The London side, playing in Europe for the first time in their history, defended resolutely in a cagey encounter on an artificial pitch. Jean-Philippe Mateta, scorer of the decisive goal in the first leg, twice went close, while the Norwegian hosts failed to register a shot on target.
“It is a huge achievement to go into the group stage,” Palace manager Oliver Glasner told Channel 5. “The players defended the box excellently. Of course, we know we can and have to play better in possession, but tonight the result was the most important.”
The draw extended Palace’s unbeaten run to 13 matches in all competitions since their 5-0 Premier League defeat to Newcastle in April. On his 51st birthday, Glasner made only three changes from the side that drew with Nottingham Forest at the weekend.
The game also came amid ongoing transfer noise around the club. Palace lost playmaker Eberechi Eze in a high-profile move before the first leg, while captain Marc Guehi reportedly attracting interest from Liverpool featured in both playoff matches.
“I told everyone at the club I didn’t want to talk about transfers today,” Glasner said. “Our job is to be successful going into the group stage, not to be distracted.”
Palace are competing in the Conference League after UEFA demoted them from the Europa League earlier this year to prevent a conflict of interest, as co-owner John Textor also holds shares in Lyon.
Elsewhere in the playoff round, English striker Nathan Butler-Oyedeji struck in first-half added time to send Lausanne through with a 1-0 win in Istanbul, eliminating Besiktas 2-1 on aggregate. AZ Alkmaar also cruised into the group stage after thrashing Levski Sofia 4-1 at home for a 6-1 aggregate victory.
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