Seeking to take advantage of their slender one-goal lead from the first leg, Crystal Palace travel to the Nye Fredrikstad Stadion in Norway to face Fredrikstad in the second leg of their Conference League playoff tie on Thursday night.
While the winners of this clash on aggregate will progress to the League Phase of the Conference League, the losers will be eliminated from Europe altogether.
Match preview
Crystal Palace head coach Oliver Glasner on July 29, 2025
Following their controversial demotion from the Europa League to the Conference League, Crystal Palace celebrated victory in their first ever European match in last week’s first leg with Fredrikstad, claiming a 1-0 win at Selhurst Park.
The Eagles were unable to call upon Eberechi Eze, who was omitted from the matchday squad ahead of finalising his transfer to Arsenal, but they relied on another star to deliver the goods in the final third, as Jean-Philippe Mateta’s instinctive header inside the far post was enough for a dominant yet frustrated home side to come out on top.
Oliver Glasner revealed that he switched to a 3-1-6 setup early on in the game in an attempt to break down Fredrikstad’s low block, and although his Palace side have only come away with a one-goal advantage, the Austrian boss was satisfied with the “important” victory on home soil.
Crystal Palace have since picked up another solitary point in the Premier League, with their goalless stalemate at Chelsea on the opening weekend of the new season followed by a 1-1 draw at home to Nottingham Forest on Sunday - Ismaila Sarr’s first-half opener was cancelled out just before the hour mark by Callum Hudson-Odoi.
While the hierarchy of the 2025 Community Shield winners are now working hard behind the scenes to recruit new players before the transfer deadline - and sort out the future of club captain Marc Guehi - Glasner is focused fully on preparing his team for Thursday as he endeavour to become the first Palace manager to steer the club into the main stage of a European competition.
Fredrikstad coach Andrea Hagen
After winning the 2024 Norwegian Cup and finishing sixth in the Eliteserien last term, Fredrikstad are competing in European qualifiers for the first time in 16 years and they remain in contention to reach the group stage/League Phase of a UEFA competition for the first time in their history.
Managed by 39-year-old Andreas Hagen, the Aristocrats initially entered Europa League qualifying earlier this summer and were knocked out in the third round by FC Midtjylland, losing 5-1 on aggregate.
Their 2-0 away defeat in the second leg took place a week before they dropped down into the Conference League and lost to Crystal Palace in the first leg of their playoff tie. Despite defeat at Selhurst Park, Hagen heaped praise on his players post-match for producing a resilient performance that has kept the tie alive for the Norwegian outfit.
Sitting 10th in the Eliteserien standings after 18 games in the 2025 season, Fredrikstad have put their domestic campaign on hold in order to concentrate solely on their Conference League tie with Palace, as they bid to pull of an almighty upset and secure their spot in Friday’s League Phase draw.
Fredrikstad Conference League form:
L
Fredrikstad form (all competitions):
D W D L L L
Crystal Palace Conference League form:
W
Crystal Palace form (all competitions):
W D W D
Team News
Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner with Daichi Kamada on August 10, 2025
Crystal Palace will be without Eddie Nketiah (thigh), Cheick Doucoure and Chadi Riad (both knee) due to injury, and Matheus Franca has joined Vasco da Gama on loan this week, while Daichi Kamada (knock) is a doubt and will be assessed ahead of kickoff.
Glasner is expected to name a strong starting lineup once again, with star defender Guehi currently in contention to retain his place in the back three despite speculation over move to Liverpool.
Summer signing Borna Sosa could be recalled to replace Tyrick Mitchell at left wing-back, while Jefferson Lerma is an option to take the place of Chris Richards at centre-back.
As for Fredrikstad, goalkeeper Valdemar Birkso missed the first leg with an unspecified injury and he is not expected to recover in time for Thursday’s contest, so 20-year-old Martin Borsheim should continue between the sticks.
The hosts will be looking to rely on Emil Holten to deliver in the final third; the striker has scored a team-high six goals so far this season and four of those have been netted on home soil.
Fredrikstad possible starting lineup:
Borsheim; Eid, S. Owusu; Fredriksen, Woledzi, Molde; Ohlenschlaeger, L. Owusu, Metcalfe, Sorlokk; Holten
Crystal Palace possible starting lineup:
Henderson; Lerma, Lacroix, Guehi; Munoz, Wharton, Hughes, Sosa; Sarr, Devenny; Mateta
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We say: Fredrikstad 0-2 Crystal Palace (Crystal Palace to win 3-0 on aggregate)
Fredrikstad will need to be more adventurous if they wish to overturn their one-goal deficit, but they are likely to lack the quality that their Premier League counterparts Crystal Palace possess across the pitch. With Glasner expected to name a strong side, it is difficult to back against the Eagles coming out on top in comfortable fashion.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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