Crystal Palace fans will be left disappointed after the club confirmed a parade will not be held in the coming days to celebrate the Conference League final win, even though Croydon Council offered to help organize it. The club told MyLondon that an event similar to last year's FA Cup victory parade to Selhurst Park will not take place in the coming days due to many players heading to international camps ahead of the World Cup.
However, diehard fans should not despair, as the club added that the Eagles plan to hold a celebration for the major European competition victory later this summer. With Oliver Glasner having managed his final match, it is not known if he will be part of the future event. A Crystal Palace spokesperson told MyLondon: "There is no parade taking place. Due to World Cup commitments, some players are heading to international camps. The club are planning to celebrate the victory later this summer."
Croydon Council's Offer
Executive Mayor of Croydon Jason Perry wrote an open letter to Palace Chairman Steve Parish detailing how the council would be 'honoured' to help work on the parade. The victory, which followed last year's historic FA Cup triumph, also secured Palace a place in next season's Europa League. Mr Perry wrote: "[A victory parade] would be a chance for supporters of all ages to come together and celebrate an extraordinary achievement in the place the club calls home. It would allow the people of Croydon, and the wider South London Palace family, to show their pride in the team, the manager, the players, the staff and everyone who has helped take the club to this historic moment."
Match Victory and Celebrations
Striker Jean-Philippe Mateta's 51st-minute goal against Rayo Vallecano carried Palace through to victory in Leipzig, Germany, last night (Wednesday, May 27). This led to scenes of elation at Selhurst Park, where more than 10,000 fans watched the match on giant screens, with a pitch invasion after the referee blew the final whistle. This is the third piece of silverware Oliver Glasner's men have brought home in just over 12 months, consisting of the FA Cup, the Community Shield, and last night's triumph.
Future Plans and Manager Search
Steve Parish believes the club's Conference League success can help attract a high-calibre replacement for Glasner and persuade key players to stay at Selhurst Park. According to bookmakers, Andoni Iraola, who has left Bournemouth, former Tottenham manager Thomas Frank, and Coventry head coach Frank Lampard are among the favourites to become the next Palace manager. Asked about the impact of Conference League glory, Parish told Sky Sports: "I think it makes our life easier in one way and more difficult in another. Easier in that I think the managers that we're looking at probably are more encouraged by us playing in Europe. I think that would mean something to them to expose themselves in that competition."
"Obviously, it's another 60 games, probably, and we need to be prepared, we know what's involved now. We need to try and get ourselves in good shape with the right quality, the right amount of cover, the right manager, and go again and see if we can't win that one." Asked how much of a boost playing in the Europa League next term will be in terms of recruiting a manager and keeping hold of players, Parish said: "I think it is, I really do. I don't think it's everything. I think that there are other challenges, there are other clubs out there looking for managers and they're probably in Europe as well, but it certainly helps."
"I think we're looking in a lot better state than we would have been had the alternative happened and we'd lost the game, and then maybe one or two players that might be thinking about staying maybe thought, 'oh, no, I don't want to do another year', so obviously it helps in a lot of ways." While co-owner Parish admits Palace need to strengthen their squad, he does not want to see a major overhaul.
