It’s a big ask, but Palace have shown they have quality to upset City

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It was February 15, 2024 and there was a feeling of sadness, discontent and chaos at Crystal Palace’s training ground.

Roy Hodgson appeared on the brink of losing his job. Results had nosedived and the fans were furious. Their club were lacking direction on the pitch and seemingly had none off it. Oliver Glasner was being lined up to stop the season meandering towards a relegation scrap.

Somewhat surprisingly, Hodgson was still set to hold a pre-match press conference ahead of their next game against fellow strugglers Everton.

Yet as assembled journalists gathered outside the club’s Beckenham training base, something else was brewing. Stood outside the gates, news broke that the audience with Hodgson had been pulled with just over half an hour’s notice.

The former England manager had been taken ill during the morning’s training session. He was en route to hospital on a day where it seemed his second stint at the club was set to be cut short.

Hodgson was soon in a stable condition in hospital and confirmed he would step down days later. Glasner’s appointment – initially planned for the summer – was confirmed and an awkward chapter came to a close.

Four-hundred and fifty-eight days later, the direction is as clear as the playing style. The Eagles are off to Wembley and the Austrian is potentially 90 minutes away from leading them to their first-ever FA Cup.

The journey hasn’t been without its bumps. It took Palace until late October to secure their first win this season. And it was only last month that they conceded 10 goals in two matches as the wheels looked set to fall off a promising campaign.

But the overall line of travel has seen a team progressing with purpose.

For so long, purely as a football team, Palace felt hard to love from the outside. The football was fairly uninspiring, but they always did enough to keep themselves away from trouble. That in itself is an achievement not to be sniffed at. But under Glasner they are offering so much more.

There is so much to like about this current Palace outfit. Dean Henderson’s fist pumps, Daniel Munoz’s blistering runs down the right, Ebere Eze’s mazy dribbles on the left and Jean-Philippe Mateta smashing corner flags. That’s without mentioning the calmness which exudes from the classy Marc Guehi, the maturity and composure of Adam Wharton and the unpredictable brilliance of Ismaila Sarr.

These talented individuals have been allowed to thrive under Glasner. They still have the chance to record Palace’s highest-ever Premier League points tally with two matches left to play.

And while heading into this weekend, fans may naturally be scarred and pessimistic from previous finals (remember the Alan Pardew dance?!), this manager won’t be. It was only three years ago on Sunday that Glasner delivered the Europa League for Eintracht Frankfurt, with his side defeating Rangers in the final.

Admittedly, there may be some trepidation taking on Manchester City just weeks after a 5-2 hammering at the Etihad. But the Austrian remained defiant even in the minutes that followed a match in which Palace should have taken a 3-0 advantage, but ended up conceding five unanswered goals: “I told Pep [Guardiola] after the game that he can’t play this system [again] because we will beat it”. A subtle reference to the two sides potentially meeting again in the final – before they’d even taken on Champions League quarter-finalists Aston Villa in the semi!

In saying all of this, clearly Palace are still the underdogs. Man City have failed to hit their usual highs this season, but are still a force to be reckoned with and their record in domestic cup competitions under Guardiola is phenomenal. They’ve won the FA Cup twice under him and have reached at least the last four stage in each of the past seven seasons. Chuck in five Premier League titles, a Champions League and four Carabao Cups among other pieces of silverware. It is some ask for the Eagles.

From a personal perspective, it’s been a joy to speak to Glasner on a regular basis and cover his 15 months at the club so far. He’s a friendly, warm and thoroughly decent human being. Behind the smiles there’s a fierce competitive streak. He’s restless and relentless in his pursuit of progress. He gives a lot and demands a lot from players, staff and the club.

It’s easy to see why Bayern Munich were circling when they looked to replace Thomas Tuchel last summer. It’s no surprise that RB Leipzig have shortlisted him to fill their vacant managerial role.

Which takes me to my final point.

The potential in this squad and manager is almost unlimited. But in reality, we’re most likely witnessing the final iteration of this particular Palace team.

The potential in this squad and manager is almost unlimited. But in reality, we’re most likely witnessing the final iteration of this particular Palace team. In all likelihood, they may lose two or three key players this summer. Maybe their manager too. It’s inconceivable that they can keep hold of all their stars. One day, maybe they can.

Perhaps European football next season – courtesy of victory on Saturday – would suffice for the likes of Guehi and Eze. Their performances in particular over the last two seasons demonstrate they belong on the biggest of stages.

But that’s in the future. Let’s live in the now. Established in 1861, on Saturday, Crystal Palace could experience their greatest day.

This news was originally published on this post .

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