The Eagles’ longest-ever season on record will culminate with a continental final on Wednesday evening in Leipzig – the 60th match of a marathon campaign, one which will conclude with the chance to win a third piece of silverware in just over a year.
Hughes, who has featured 48 times in total this season – including in 12 of Palace’s 16 European games – says the way the team have stuck together through the ups and downs – from impressive performances against the likes of Fiorentina and Shakhtar Donetsk, to a challenging winless run in the winter – means they have earned their spot in Wednesday’s Final.
There, they will need to stay resilient again against a talented Rayo Vallecano side, in order to have a chance of sealing silverware again.
“It feels like years ago we started this campaign with Fredrikstad at home!” Hughes laughed. “There are always ups and downs throughout the course of a season, and that's happened to us. I think we've dealt with it really well as a group of players.
“It’s testament to the group of players that we've always stuck by each other, whoever's playing. We've had a small squad for quite a large part of the season, and it'll be our 60th game, which is quite incredible for a club like Palace. I think our success has come from sticking together internally.
“We’re a confident group, but never arrogant. I think that's been a key part of our success. No-one has a right to win silverware, no-one has a right to win the Final. I think we've earned it \[the Final spot\] throughout the season, playing with intensity, and everyone's stuck together.
“I think that's been the core to our success. We’ve got confidence going into the Final.”