Crystal Palace will stage a friendly after the March international break as Oliver Glasner looks to keep his side sharp ahead of their Conference League quarter-final clash with Fiorentina.
The Eagles required extra-time to knock Larnaca out of the last-16 on Thursday, but will not play another competitive match before hosting Firoentina at Selhurst Park in the quarter-final first-leg on April 9.
They had been due to visit Manchester City this Saturday in a final league outing before the March international break, but the match was postponed due to City’s involvement in Sunday’s Carabao Cup final.
That leaves the Eagles facing a 21-day break between matches.
Glasner has a plan to maximise the time off, though, with a friendly in the offing as he looks to bridge the gap between matches.
Reflecting on the Larnaca win, he told TNT Sport: “It’s a huge achievement. We are looking forward to really making the best of these three weeks because our next competitive game is against Fiorentina at Selhurst Park.
“We will have a few days off and many of our players go to their national teams. And then we will prepare and make a friendly to stay in the rhythm.”
He continued: “I expect Eddie Nketiah back so everybody will help us because then it will be a very tight schedule until the end of the season and hopefully our European journey continues.”
Fiorentina will pose a tricky test for Palace. They were beaten finalists in the Conference League in 2022 and 2023, though may have their heads elsewhere when they visit Selhurst Park as they look to dodge relegation from Serie A.
They beat Rakow Czestochowa 4-2 on aggregate to reach this stage of the competition.
It will be just the second ever meeting between the two sides, and the first since May 1973 when they drew 2-2 in the Anglo-Italian Cup.
