Crystal Palace have won their first ever European trophy, winning a tense UEFA Conference League final 1-0 against Spanish side Rayo Vallecano.
Australian James Holland was part of the huge celebrations among the Palace players and coaching staff, having been an assistant to head coach Oliver Glasner throughout this campaign.
Holland, who earned 17 caps for the Socceroos during a playing career that only officially ended a couple of years ago, has not yet confirmed if he’ll be following Glasner out the door, with the highly-respected Austrian already confirming that the Conference League final would be his last game in charge of a club that he’s coached for the past two seasons.
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French striker Jean-Philippe Mateta was the hero for Palace, scoring the game’s only goal early in the second half when Rayo goalkeeper Augusto Batalla palmed the ball into Mateta’s path following a fierce shot by Palace midfielder Adam Wharton.
The English club, who started the season by winning the FA Community Shield following their FA Cup triumph last year, had several chances to kill the game off late in the second half but in the end had to settle for a one-goal win.
Not that their fans cared one bit, celebrating the club’s first continental trophy with gusto in Leipzig, Germany, as well as at the club’s home ground back in London, where thousands gathered to watch on the big screen.
SCENES AT SELHURST pic.twitter.com/dBHzAReh2T — Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) May 27, 2026
More to come…