As Oliver Glasner bade farewell to Selhurst Park on Sunday, Crystal Palace chair Steve Parish paid tribute on behalf of his fellow fans. “You gave us one of the best days of our lives,” he said, citing last year’s FA Cup final. Only one of the best? Perhaps Parish had exercised a little caution because he felt something still better was yet to come.
Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City were beaten at Wembley last May; the champions Liverpool at the national stadium in August’s Community Shield. Glasner’s third and last final comes against a Rayo Vallecano team who finished eighth in LaLiga. But there is a case for arguing victory in Leipzig on Wednesday would be the best of all, not just the completion of a reign but the culmination. For clubs such as Palace, strangers to continental competition, Europe can feel mythical, something only experienced by others.
