Crystal Palace played European football for the first time in 27 years and beat Fredrikstad 1-0 in the first leg of their Uefa Conference League play-off. Fans attended wearing 'Eze 10' shirts and holding hand-drawn signs thanking Eberechi Eze, who was absent from the squad amid an imminent move to Arsenal. Manager Oliver Glasner confirmed Eze would not play for Palace again and said incoming signings would be ineligible for the second leg. The players entered to fireworks and a celebratory atmosphere. Palace's previous European outing was a 4-0 aggregate Intertoto Cup defeat by Samsunspor, while Jean-Philippe Mateta scored Palace's first-ever European goal.
On the one hand there will have been excitement at seeing their side play European football for the first time in almost three decades, as well as making history with their first-ever win in Europe as they beat Fredrikstad 1-0 in the first leg of their Uefa Conference League play-off. But on the other hand it seemed many were resigned to the departure of the talismanic Eberechi Eze, with the midfielder absent from the squad as a move to Arsenal appears imminent.
Supporters arrived wearing shirts with "Eze 10" on the back, while many had hand drawn signs saying thank you to a player who had brought them countless magical moments on the pitch since his arrival from QPR five years ago. After the win, manager Oliver Glasner confirmed Eze was on the verge of leaving the club. "Ebs will not play for us any more so it does not make sense to talk about him," he told Channel 5. "It's gone. It looks like wishing him all the best for the new club and for us it is about bringing more players in but they will not be allowed to play in the second leg."
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