I am writing this the morning after the most magnificent evening in Leipzig which so many of you will have enjoyed both here and at home, and I hope you all still have big smiles on your faces as we do.
It’s hard to explain how I feel leaving Crystal Palace after the last two years, but I have to say what a privilege it’s been working for the football club. It’s a period that will stay with me for the rest of my life.
As I said last weekend, I arrived at Selhurst Park as a stranger. Now I feel like a South Londoner. Of course, all football fans will say their club is special, but Palace really is unique, with a distinct energy rooted within the community and family at the core.
Most of all the club is built on the strongest of connections between the team and its fans. I feel very fortunate to have been on an amazing journey with you all during the time I have been here.
Football – and football management – always comes back to results. Without results you don’t stay in any place too long. But the results and even the trophies are not what has made me most proud. What I’m most proud of is being part of a team that we’ve built together and the bond between players, backroom staff, Steve and the board, and most importantly you, the supporters. Together we believed that there is nothing this club can’t achieve, no opponent we could not defeat.
I take with me many happy memories, but what stands out is the atmosphere you created at Selhurst Park on matchdays – the emotion, the intensity, the noise; all of which have provided the fuel for our talented players to express themselves and give their best.
We created a mindset that we could compete. That doesn't mean you win every single game. But we have shown that Crystal Palace can fight against the very best teams at home and across the continent.
We had the perfect ending in Leipzig. It was a game that showed just what this group have become. A team that refuses to give in and backs each other every step of the way. It’ll give me great pride to watch you in the Europa League next season where I know you, the supporters, will give the team every chance of having another successful season.
I want to thank you for your amazing support, your resilience and most of all your belief. I will continue to follow your progress and anticipate your continued success – you deserve it.
All the best,
Oliver Glasner