{"id":122129,"date":"2026-05-29T08:02:01","date_gmt":"2026-05-29T08:02:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=122129"},"modified":"2026-05-29T08:02:01","modified_gmt":"2026-05-29T08:02:01","slug":"mateta-fires-crystal-palace-to-conference-league-crown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=122129","title":{"rendered":"Mateta fires Crystal Palace to Conference League crown"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>2 Minute, 19 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>

Crystal Palace claimed their first European trophy as Jean-Philippe Mateta\u2019s second-half goal secured a 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano in the final of the Conference League on Wednesday, the perfect farewell for manager Oliver Glasner.<\/p>\n

Initially set to compete in the Europa League after their strong \u200cdomestic campaign, Palace were reassigned to the third-tier Conference League due to UEFA\u2019s multi-club ownership regulations before the tournament began.<\/p>\n

Rather than viewing it as a setback, they embraced the competition and turned their unexpected route into a historic run that culminated in the club\u2019s greatest night on the European stage.<\/p>\n

They took the lead on 51 minutes through a familiar source.<\/p>\n

Adam Wharton\u2019s shot from the edge of the box was only parried by Vallecano goalkeeper, Augusto Batalla, and striker Mateta knocked in the rebound from close-range.<\/p>\n

Yeremy Pino struck both posts with a free kick shortly afterwards and Mateta brought a \u2060fine save out of Batalla as Palace pushed for a second that in the end they did not need in pursuit of a second \u200bmajor trophy in the club\u2019s 120-year history.<\/p>\n

Palace became the third English side in four years to lift the trophy after West Ham United and Chelsea.<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s triumph ensured Glasner will leave \u200bPalace on a high having announced his departure from Selhurst Park in January following the club\u2019s FA Cup and Community Shield wins in 2025.<\/p>\n

French forward Mateta set the tone from the outset, harrying defenders, winning long balls and leaving Rayo Vallecano\u2019s back line chasing shadows.<\/p>\n

Palace pressed high early, with Chadi Riad, Jaydee Canvot and Maxence Lacroix forming a disciplined three-man defence that dealt comfortably with Rayo\u2019s direct approach. The Spanish side struggled to build from the back and were often reduced to hurried clearances.<\/p>\n

Rayo gradually found some rhythm down the left through Pep Chavarria, and Unai Lopez flashed a shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box in the 39th minute.<\/p>\n

Palace, \u200chowever, should \u2060have gone ahead before the break when Wharton picked out Tyrick Mitchell, whose close-range header drifted wide.<\/p>\n

The first half ended without a shot on target, but Palace returned with greater urgency and broke the deadlock five minutes after the restart.<\/p>\n

Wharton unleashed a powerful effort from distance that goalkeeper Batalla could only parry into danger, and Mateta reacted quickest to convert from close range.<\/p>\n

Rayo pressed for an equaliser, with Jorge de Frutos going close in the 68th minute, but Palace held firm after dropping deeper, turning Leipzig, for one \u2060night, into a home away from home. \u2013 Reuters<\/p>\n

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The post Mateta fires Crystal Palace to Conference League crown appeared first on Ghanaian Times.<\/p>\n

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Crystal Palace claimed their first European trophy as Jean-Philippe Mateta\u2019s second-half goal secured a 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano in the final of the Conference League on Wednesday, the perfect farewell for manager Oliver Glasner. Initially set to compete in the Europa League after their strong \u200cdomestic campaign, Palace were reassigned to the third-tier Conference \u2026<\/p>\n

The post Mateta fires Crystal Palace to Conference League crown<\/a> appeared first on Ghanaian Times<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":122131,"comment_status":"registered_only","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"link","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2337],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-122129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-link","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-foriegn","post_format-post-format-link"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=122129"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122129\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/122131"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=122129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=122129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=122129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}