Crystal Palace FC's first-ever major European adventure is underway, as we battle to win the UEFA Conference League. Find out how you can join us on our journey.

European Tour

## Born in the USA

> After a remarkable two-year journey from Alabama to Bayern Munich, Chris Richards fulfilled a lifelong dream when he moved to the Premier League with Crystal Palace in 2022.

Born in Alabama, USA, Richards began his career near Houston before joining F.C. Dallas’ Academy and earning a professional contract there.

He moved to Houston and then Dallas aged 16 – both over 600 miles from his hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, where his parents still live – and initially lived alone with a host family. He then made the even larger jump of joining Bayern Munich aged 18, where he learnt fluent German and made his senior debut shortly after signing.

From here Richards’ rise was swift: he made his senior debut in a friendly against Paris Saint-Germain in 2018, his professional debut with Bayern Munich II in 2019, and his full Bayern debut in June 2020. A few months later he featured as a substitute in the German side’s DFL-Supercup win over Borussia Dortmund.

The young defender went on to represent Bayern in the Bundesliga and Champions League before joining 1899 Hoffenheim on loan in 2021. He has played a total of 82 professional matches.

Richards began his international career early, too, competing with the US Under-20s to win the CONCACAF U20 Championship aged 18. His performances at this level earned him a senior debut in November 2020, coming on as a substitute against Panama. Richards has since amassed seven further caps.

He made his debut for the Eagles at Anfield as a second-half substitute in August 2022. Richards went on to make his first start for the club, after a leg injury, in January 2023 in the 1-1 draw against Manchester United at Selhurst Park.

Commenting on his first start he said: “It was worth the wait! Being able to make it \[my first Premier League start\] at home, especially in a game like tonight, was amazing."

His performances against Manchester United home and away, along with keeping a clean sheet against Newcastle United, saw him win the club's Player of the Month award in January 2023.

Richards' first domestic season in red and blue ended with 10 appearances in total, however he also managed to score his first international goal in the final of the CONCACAF Nations League against Canada to guide the United States to a 2-0 win.

The 2023/24 campaign saw Richards establish more of a place in the side, playing multiple roles as a centre-back, defensive midfielder and even as a right-back. He racked up 30 appearances in total, and scored his first goal against Burnley in a 3-0 win at Selhurst Park in February 2024.

Richards also found CONCACAF Nations League success once more, winning the title again in a 2-0 win over Mexico in March 2024. He was also recognised for his exceptional work with the Palace for Life Foundation - winning the PFA Community Champion award.

In 2024/25, Richards made 32 appearances across all competitions - six of which were in the FA Cup, where he played every single minute on the way to making history in the final against Manchester City.

2020

IFFHS Men's World Youth Team

January 2023

Crystal Palace Player of the Month

2023/24

PFA Community Champion

Richards

Twitter

Instagram

Appearances

Goals

Richards reflects on Mostar

Richards reflects on 100th Palace appearance

CPFC x SunExpress aircraft livery

Chris Richards Previews Fulham

The best of our Defenders | Brighton (H)

Chris speaks on victory against Brentford

Match Highlights: Crystal Palace 1-1 Millwall

The Full 90: Crystal Palace v Millwall | Palace TV+

Chris speaks on win against Millwall

Richards reflects on victory at Villa Park

Chris speaks on tough game against Nottingham Forest

Chris speaks on solid performance against Chelsea

Richards on the final game at Anfield 

Fa Cup Final | Chris Richards & Matt Turner | Post Match Interview

Richards praises team spirit

Goals Inside Box

Goals Outside Box

Right Foot

Left Foot

Shots

Shots on target

Hit woodwork

Penalties taken

Penalties scored

Touches

Touches in opposition box

Aerial duels

Aerial duels won

Interceptions

Blocks

Recoveries

Tackles won

Duels won

Clearances

Minutes

Attempted passes

Successful passes

Chances created

Crosses

Yellow cards

Red cards

Fouls won

Fouls Conceded

Season

Games

Full Time Scenes Larnaca - (A)

#### **Oliver Glasner on Sarr to Palace TV:**

"It's a great season for him and honestly I'm not really surprised. I predicted it before the season. He had a great season last year without pre-season, without being in a rhythm. He started slow, which was completely normal. 

"He wasn't allowed to train or play at Marseille. And then [after joining] he showed how good he is and now he knows exactly how we want to play. 

"He knows where to move, where to run. He's in the pocket, he makes runs in behind. He always gets his chances and he has the confidence to score. 

"He's in fantastic shape and it's great for us to have him."

<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWHCSMIxqqR/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWHCSMIxqqR/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;">View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"><div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; 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overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWHCSMIxqqR/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Crystal Palace Football Club (@cpfc)</a></p></div></blockquote>
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#### **Maxence Lacroix on the full-time scenes to Palace TV:**

“I always enjoy it because it's our celebration. We could see also that all the team made us a celebration in the end.

“This is, I think, the foundation of this club, of this team: it's a big family.

“I think it's unbelievable when you know that you can go everywhere in the world, and you’ll have some people who’ll support you.

“Today, we could feel that they were with us.

“I just want to say ‘thank you’ from the team, for those who travelled and for those who also watch us on TV. 

"We’ll see them also in Florence for the next game!”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">&quot;This is the foundation of this club, this team, it&#39;s a big family&quot; 🥰 <a href="https://t.co/tD0MdP7dRb">pic.twitter.com/tD0MdP7dRb</a></p>&mdash; Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC/status/2034926419877535779?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 20, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

#### **Oliver Glasner in his post-match press conference:**

"I like the reaction after the 1-1 I think because we dictated the pace of the game.

"Then we were really aggressive playing forward, creating many dangerous situations in the box, of course we hit the post three times at the end but fortunately we have Ismaïla Sarr right now in very good shape, scoring the second goal.

"Again, if you have 29-6 shots it should be a bit easier. But at the end most important thing we achieved and qualifying for the quarter-finals is a huge achievement for Crystal Palace, and a huge achievement for all of us."

The manager speaks on a resilient performance in cyprus

#### **And the best of the rest on social media...**

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Let’s go❤️💙 <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CPFC</a></p>&mdash; Dean Henderson (@deanhenderson) <a href="https://twitter.com/deanhenderson/status/2034727449917866409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">Yesssss 🙌 <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CPFC</a></p>&mdash; Eddie Nketiah 📞 (@EddieNketiah9) <a href="https://twitter.com/EddieNketiah9/status/2034728145018847337?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="und" dir="ltr">COYP 😤 <a href="https://t.co/vI3gGt8tOy">pic.twitter.com/vI3gGt8tOy</a></p>&mdash; Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC/status/2034733146327896489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">So good 🦅 <a href="https://t.co/67bdYFZyzX">pic.twitter.com/67bdYFZyzX</a></p>&mdash; Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC/status/2035054262259273961?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 20, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWHMoeqRzOr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14" style=" background:#FFF; border:0; border-radius:3px; box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width:540px; min-width:326px; padding:0; width:99.375%; width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px); width:calc(100% - 2px);"><div style="padding:16px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DWHMoeqRzOr/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" style=" background:#FFFFFF; line-height:0; padding:0 0; text-align:center; text-decoration:none; width:100%;" target="_blank"> <div style=" display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div></div></div><div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display:block; height:50px; margin:0 auto 12px; width:50px;"><svg width="50px" height="50px" viewBox="0 0 60 60" version="1.1" xmlns="https://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"><g stroke="none" stroke-width="1" fill="none" fill-rule="evenodd"><g transform="translate(-511.000000, -20.000000)" fill="#000000"><g><path d="M556.869,30.41 C554.814,30.41 553.148,32.076 553.148,34.131 C553.148,36.186 554.814,37.852 556.869,37.852 C558.924,37.852 560.59,36.186 560.59,34.131 C560.59,32.076 558.924,30.41 556.869,30.41 M541,60.657 C535.114,60.657 530.342,55.887 530.342,50 C530.342,44.114 535.114,39.342 541,39.342 C546.887,39.342 551.658,44.114 551.658,50 C551.658,55.887 546.887,60.657 541,60.657 M541,33.886 C532.1,33.886 524.886,41.1 524.886,50 C524.886,58.899 532.1,66.113 541,66.113 C549.9,66.113 557.115,58.899 557.115,50 C557.115,41.1 549.9,33.886 541,33.886 M565.378,62.101 C565.244,65.022 564.756,66.606 564.346,67.663 C563.803,69.06 563.154,70.057 562.106,71.106 C561.058,72.155 560.06,72.803 558.662,73.347 C557.607,73.757 556.021,74.244 553.102,74.378 C549.944,74.521 548.997,74.552 541,74.552 C533.003,74.552 532.056,74.521 528.898,74.378 C525.979,74.244 524.393,73.757 523.338,73.347 C521.94,72.803 520.942,72.155 519.894,71.106 C518.846,70.057 518.197,69.06 517.654,67.663 C517.244,66.606 516.755,65.022 516.623,62.101 C516.479,58.943 516.448,57.996 516.448,50 C516.448,42.003 516.479,41.056 516.623,37.899 C516.755,34.978 517.244,33.391 517.654,32.338 C518.197,30.938 518.846,29.942 519.894,28.894 C520.942,27.846 521.94,27.196 523.338,26.654 C524.393,26.244 525.979,25.756 528.898,25.623 C532.057,25.479 533.004,25.448 541,25.448 C548.997,25.448 549.943,25.479 553.102,25.623 C556.021,25.756 557.607,26.244 558.662,26.654 C560.06,27.196 561.058,27.846 562.106,28.894 C563.154,29.942 563.803,30.938 564.346,32.338 C564.756,33.391 565.244,34.978 565.378,37.899 C565.522,41.056 565.552,42.003 565.552,50 C565.552,57.996 565.522,58.943 565.378,62.101 M570.82,37.631 C570.674,34.438 570.167,32.258 569.425,30.349 C568.659,28.377 567.633,26.702 565.965,25.035 C564.297,23.368 562.623,22.342 560.652,21.575 C558.743,20.834 556.562,20.326 553.369,20.18 C550.169,20.033 549.148,20 541,20 C532.853,20 531.831,20.033 528.631,20.18 C525.438,20.326 523.257,20.834 521.349,21.575 C519.376,22.342 517.703,23.368 516.035,25.035 C514.368,26.702 513.342,28.377 512.574,30.349 C511.834,32.258 511.326,34.438 511.181,37.631 C511.035,40.831 511,41.851 511,50 C511,58.147 511.035,59.17 511.181,62.369 C511.326,65.562 511.834,67.743 512.574,69.651 C513.342,71.625 514.368,73.296 516.035,74.965 C517.703,76.634 519.376,77.658 521.349,78.425 C523.257,79.167 525.438,79.673 528.631,79.82 C531.831,79.965 532.853,80.001 541,80.001 C549.148,80.001 550.169,79.965 553.369,79.82 C556.562,79.673 558.743,79.167 560.652,78.425 C562.623,77.658 564.297,76.634 565.965,74.965 C567.633,73.296 568.659,71.625 569.425,69.651 C570.167,67.743 570.674,65.562 570.82,62.369 C570.966,59.17 571,58.147 571,50 C571,41.851 570.966,40.831 570.82,37.631"></path></g></g></g></svg></div><div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style=" color:#3897f0; 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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">We love you, we love you, we love you 😘 <a href="https://t.co/O77CYn9Dgh">pic.twitter.com/O77CYn9Dgh</a></p>&mdash; Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC) <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC/status/2034745980680380574?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Crystal Palace defeated AEK Larnaca 2-1 on aggregate to progress to the last eight of the UEFA Conference League on Thursday – here is the rest of the reaction and celebrations from a memorable night in Cyprus...

The reaction & celebration round-up as Eagles reach quarters

AEK Larnaca v Crystal Palace (2026-03-19)

Crystal Palace

UEFA Conference League

AEK Larnaca

Last Match

Fiorentina

Next Match

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### Summary:

- Alonso makes four changes to the side that drew with Fulham as Jacob Fasida, Seb Bonsu-Amako, and Stuart Oduro come into the side.
- 10: The visitors are enjoying the lion's share of possession in the early stages, but are yet to forge a clear-cut chance thanks to our defensive resolve.
- 14: Stuart Oduro drifts inside to sting the palms of the 'keeper, before Chuks Okoli fires over on the follow-up.
- 17: Raihaan Anderson’s bicycle kick sails over, while Khyan Frazer-Williams side-foots straight down the ‘keepers throat.
- 20: Despite Brighton's territorial dominance, Palace are the team in the ascendancy here, having called Liam Doyle into action several times.
- 27: Younes Ibrahim flashes over the free-kick.
- 29: Lucca Benetton preserves parity by denying Henry Kasvosve one-on-one, before an alert Hugo Bull scrambles clear.
- 40: Frazer-Williams deceives his marker and pulls the ball back to Oduro, who side-foots into the defender close-range.
- 43: Mylo Bernard whips a strike wide.
- HT: Palace 0-0 Liverpool
- 50: Judd's inswinging corner sees pinball ensue, before Bonsu-Amako hooks the ball back into the box and Angibeaud wins the header, but it's comfortable for Doyle...
- 53: Oduro twists and turns before seeing his lashed strike denied by a diving Doyle.
- 60: Ibrahim twists and turns before striking low and hard towards Benetton’s near post.
- 65: Palace’s short free-kick attempt is nullified as Fasida drives into a sea of onrushing yellow shorts.
- 74: Judd clears Jacob Parsons miscued effort off the line.
- 85: Brighton rattle the frame of the goal.
- 87: Frazer-Williams drives into the space down the left channel and sees his shot cannon off the bar.
- Six minutes added on...
- 90 (+4'): Angibeaud's flicked header strays wide.
- FT: Palace 0-0 Brighton

Heading into the tie, Palace had been held to a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Fulham in a contest of shifting momentum on Tuesday evening.

The result extended Alonso’s side’s unbeaten run to five matches, with four wins in that spell, as they continued to challenge on multiple fronts – reaching the Premier League Cup final, the FA Youth Cup semi-final, and remaining firmly in the title race.

They sat third on 35 points, four behind Chelsea and nine off leaders Tottenham, with two games in hand.

Brighton, meanwhile, occupied fourth on 32 points, level with Aston Villa despite playing a game more, and just three points behind Palace. Since the turn of the year, they had recorded four wins, three draws, and two defeats.

Alonso made four changes to the side that drew with Fulham. Jacob Fasida returned from the U21s to replace Daniel Owoade, Seb Bonsu Amako came in for Euan Danaher, Stuart Oduro replaced Raihaan Anderson, and Mylo Bernard was named in place of Donte Martin. The starting XI featured three Under-16s and two first-year scholars, highlighting the youthful nature of the team.

We got underway at Copers Cope on what was a beautiful Saturday morning, the sunshine providing a fitting backdrop for a clash between two fierce rivals.

Brighton arrived with a physically imposing side, featuring several players with Under-21 experience, while Palace fielded a youthful line-up made up largely of Under-16s and first-year scholars.

As expected, the Seagulls enjoyed the lion’s share of possession, moving the ball well throughout.

Palace, however, settled into a disciplined low block, showcasing their defensive resolve to frustrate the visitors and restrict them to no clear-cut chances.

Despite Brighton’s territorial dominance, the first real opportunity fell to the young Eagles on 14 minutes.

An intense high press forced a turnover as Brighton attempted to play out from the back, allowing Oduro to drift inside from the right and into the box. His effort stung the palms of the ‘keeper as he looked to squeeze it inside the near post, before Chuks Okoli fired the follow-up the wrong side of the bar.

Moments later, Raihaan Anderson’s acrobatic bicycle kick sailed over, while Khyan Frazer-Williams’ side-footed volley went straight down the ‘keeper’s throat.

The game had suddenly burst into life, with both sides finding rhythm and tempo. Approaching the 20-minute mark, Doyle had been called into action several times, while the Seagulls threatened with quick feet on the break, but without creating anything meaningful.

Midway through the half, the Seagulls had Benetton scrambling for the first time as Younes Ibrahim flashed a central free-kick from 20 yards narrowly past the top-right corner.

As the game moved into its final third, the visitors carved out their clearest opening. Bailey Palmer lifted a ball over the top for Henry Kasvosve to chase, forcing Benetton into an excellent one-on-one save, before Hugo Bull reacted quickly to scramble the danger clear.

At the other end, David Angibeaud did well to turn his marker and fired a low cross across the face of goal, but no one in red and blue was on hand to apply the finishing touch.

Following a brief pause in play, Frazer-Williams beat his man and pulled the ball back for the onrushing Oduro, whose close-range effort was blocked by a defender. Shortly before the break, Bernard then whipped a strike narrowly wide of the post.

Heading into half-time, it remained evenly matched, with nothing to separate the two sides.

With the game finely poised, the second half promised much – and it quickly delivered. Five minutes after the restart, Palace mounted a set-piece barrage. Jasper Judd’s inswinging corner caused chaos in the box, with Bonsu-Amako hooking the ball back into danger and David Angibeaud rising to meet it, only to direct a comfortable header into Doyle’s hands.

Frazer-Williams then drove to the byline and nearly caught the ‘keeper out, his cross almost dipping in under the crossbar if not for Doyle’s fingertips.

On 55 minutes, Oduro twisted and turned to carve out space before unleashing a goalbound effort that again forced a sharp diving save.

The pendulum briefly swung back in Brighton’s favour, but despite sustained pressure, breaking down Palace’s resilient backline proved difficult. Ibrahim showcased his trickery, weaving into a shooting position, only for Benetton to deny him at the near post.

Instructions from the sideline were clear – stay organised and weather the storm. “Organise,” urged Alonso, as Palace stood firm against wave after wave of attack, waiting for opportunities to emerge on the counter.

One such chance came from a set-piece, as Bernard was brought down on the edge of the area. Judd played it short to Fasida, whose driven effort cannoned into a sea of yellow shirts. Brighton broke quickly in response, but Benetton was equal to the danger with a fine far-post save.

The visitors continued to threaten, fizzing a dangerous delivery across the face of goal, only for Judd to make a vital intervention and deflect it away from the penalty area. Yet another stoppage followed as both sides fought for control.

Entering the final third, Kasvosve powered down the right flank into the box and squared to Jacob Parsons in acres of space, but Parsons miscued the effort, allowing Judd to scramble clear off the line.

In the latter stages, Alonso turned to his bench to inject fresh legs and inspire a late winner, bringing on Daniel Owoade, Jamar Lee, and Donte Martin.

With five minutes remaining, Palmer delivered an inswinging free-kick. It was cleared, but only as far as the No. 11, who struck again, fizzing the ball across to the near post. A yellow shirt got a touch, but the frame of the goal came to Palace’s rescue – one of those heart-in-mouth moments.

That said, Frazer-Williams came agonisingly close to winning it for Palace driving into the space down the left channel; and beating Doyle but rattling the crossbar.

Given the number of stoppages, five minutes were added on, and the pendulum swung in Palace’s favour. Brighton survived a succession of threatening deliveries into the box, with Angibeaud’s flicked header wide proving the only real chance of note in the added time.

The result sees us remain third on 36 points after 20 matches in the U18 Premier League South, while extending our unbeaten run to six matches. Our U18s now have a much-welcomed two-week break for the international window, before returning to action against Chelsea on 4th April at Cobham.

**Palace:** Benetton, Judd ©, Frazer-Williams, Bull, Fasida, Okoli, Anderson (Owoade, 81’), Bonsu-Amako, Bernard (Martin, 74’), Oduro (Lee, 81’), Angibeaud.

**Subs not used:** Shittu, McDonald.

**Brighton:** Doyle, Outen, Crutchett (Brown, 75’), Alakiu, Ferdinand, Brennan (Anah, 75’), Kasvosve, Palmer, Parsons (Newnham-Reeve, 86’), Ibrahim (Oppong, 63’), Palmer.

**Subs not used:** Evans.

A youthful Crystal Palace Under-18s side, made up largely of Under-16s and first-year scholars, secured a hard-fought point against a more experienced Brighton team in the U18 Premier League South on Saturday morning (21st March) at the Academy, extending our unbeaten run to five matches.

U18 Report & Highlights: Youthful Palace hold firm to earn hard-fought point against Brighton

Crystal Palace U18 v Brighton and Hove Albion U18 (2026-03-21)

**Here are some of the best figures and stats from a memorable night in Cyprus!**

#### **95** 

Appearances for Daniel Muñoz for Palace. Yet it was his first as a substitute! 

#### **Five**

Goals for Ismaïla Sarr in the Conference League this season. The top scorers in the competition currently have eight, can Sarr make a late charge for the golden boot?

#### **Ten**

years since.... Palace's last extra-time. That came in the 2016 FA Cup Final. Thankfully this one turned out a little different.

#### **6.92**

XG for Palace from our three games across Larnaca this season. That also featured 14 big chances. At least two went in!

#### **1979**

For the first time since 1978/79, an English club debuting in Europe has reached the quarter-finals. That was Nottingham Forest, who only went to go on and win the competition....

#### **Fifth**

AEK Larnaca are the fifth side Palace have played exactly three times. Accrington Stanley, Kettering Town, Yeovil Town and, coincidentally...Fiorentina!

#### **6**

Games unbeaten for the Eagles in the UEFA Conference League.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">1979 - <a href="https://twitter.com/CPFC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@CPFC</a> are the first English team to reach the quarter-finals in their first ever campaign in a major UEFA competition since Nottingham Forest in 1978-79, who went on to win the European Cup that year. Omen. <a href="https://t.co/mZjiEJuaRx">pic.twitter.com/mZjiEJuaRx</a></p>&mdash; OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) <a href="https://twitter.com/OptaJoe/status/2034727256761721140?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 19, 2026</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

#### **13**

Shots from Ismaïla Sarr in Thursday night's game. Two hit the woodwork, with two finding the net!

#### **814**

Minutes played by captain Maxence Lacroix in Europe this season.

#### **Fourth**

A fourth win in extra-time away from home for the Eagles (Bristol City, Brighton and Manchester United the other sites of our wins).

#### **15**

Goals in all competitions from Ismaila Sarr, the most he's scored in a single season.

Crystal Palace defeated AEK Larnaca 2-1 on aggregate to reach the last eight of the UEFA Conference League – ensuring our first European campaign will now feature a two legged quarter-final against Fiorentina.

First-team

First-team

The reaction & celebration round-up as Eagles reach quarters

U18 Report & Highlights: Youthful Palace hold firm to earn hard-fought point against Brighton

The Numbers: Palace make history in Cyprus

Shop Palace Shirts

26Chris
Richards

First-team

First-team

The reaction & celebration round-up as Eagles reach quarters

U18 Report & Highlights: Youthful Palace hold firm to earn hard-fought point against Brighton

The Numbers: Palace make history in Cyprus

Shop Palace Shirts

26ChrisRichards

26Chris
Richards