Conference League Final Lineups, Stats & Preview, TV Channel, Online Live Stream & Predictions

Oliver Glasner has prepared his players thoroughly for the meeting with Rayo Vallecano in the first European final for both clubs – but the Austrian hopes they will be in game mood for his final game in charge.

A 2021/22 Europa League winner with Eintracht Frankfurt, Glasner can claim his second trophy with the Eagles following their FA Cup triumph last season when the side, who reached 15th in the Premier League, face eighth-place finishers in Spain.

« We showed many, many games from La Liga and the Conference League when they were playing against three at the back, against four at the back and when they had more or less possession, » Glassner said of the Vallecano footage he watched with his team, speaking after landing in Leipzig on Tuesday.

« I hope nobody goes into a bar, but I’m pretty sure they won’t. They can sleep in for quite a while (Wednesday) and then we’ll be playing head tennis.

« The day is long and the 30 minutes when the players are playing head tennis is one of the best moments for me because I see the kids playing football and having so much fun.

« Everybody wants to win, but they’re laughing and joking and I’m sitting there watching with a big smile. They always feel good.

« I hope they’re loving (the day) and joking around, not calm and introverted because they’re nervous. They have to be who they are and who they are, and that’s when they have the best chance of doing well. »

Rayo Vallecano won 2-1 against Alaves on Saturday to extend their unbeaten run to nine games in all competitions, with 38-year-old Inigo Perez hoping to join Aston Villa’s Unai Emery, Barcelona’s Pere Romeu and Paris Saint-Germain’s Luis Enrique or Arsenal’s Mikel Arteta among Spanish managers who have won major European club trophies this month.

« They are the toughest team in the competition and are favorites to win the title, » said sporting director David Kobeno AS of the palace.

« It would have been difficult to knock them out over two legs, but anything can happen in a final. We can win it – and we do. »

« There have been some very good, historic Rayo teams, but this one is achieving things that no other team has achieved in the history of the club.

« Staying in the top division for six consecutive years is no mean feat for a team like ours, and reaching the final of a European competition will be difficult to repeat. »

I believe this is truly Rayo’s best team in history.

Crystal Palace vs Rayo Vallecano squad news

Palace centre-back Chris Richards is a doubt after rupturing two ligaments in his ankle, with Glassner calling the injury « stable but quite swollen ».

Adam Wharton made a brief cameo appearance in Sunday’s 2-1 home defeat by Arsenal before stepping down with an ankle problem that Glassner hopes the influential midfielder will recover from.

Ilias Ahomach is a doubt for Rayo Vallecano with a problem the on-loan Villarreal winger picked up in the warm-up ahead of their semi-final second leg against Strasbourg.

Alvaro Garcia, who has three goals this season, is back from injury. The winger is the club’s second top scorer in the Conference League after Alemao, who scored four times.