Crystal Palace reached the UEFA Conference League group stage with a 1-0 aggregate victory over Fredrikstad, Mateta's first-leg goal proving decisive after a goalless second leg in Norway. The group-stage draw will be announced Friday and the competition starts Thursday, October 2. Palace face Aston Villa on Sunday and are still seeking their first Premier League win after draws with Chelsea (0-0) and Nottingham Forest (1-1). The manager labeled qualification a huge achievement, praised the players' defensive resilience against Fredrikstad's long-ball approach, and stressed the need to improve possession play.
It's a huge achievement going into the group stage. It was our second go, with the first being winning the Community Shield, and now today, of course. There was all the noise with us being demoted to the Conference League, playing two games against opposition who aren't easy to play. We conceded so many long balls, and they bring their game into the final third quite easily, but we just had to accept it.
The players did really well, and defended the box excellently. We know we can and have to play better in possession, but after all it is important to be in the group stage and this is what we did,
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