Crystal Palace now sit just three games away from a European trophy, in their first-ever season competing on the global stage. They face Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa Conference League, with the final set to take place at Leipzig on June 3.
Crucially, the second leg of the tie will take place at Selhurst Park on May 7th, so how much of an effect will that have on Palace’s chances of making the final in Leipzig?
Crystal Palace’s form at Selhurst Park in Europe this season has been mixed, with the team playing seven matches and winning just four of them, most recently the 0-0 draw with West Ham in the Premier League.
Home results
Qualifier 1st leg – Palace 1-0 Fredrikstad (Mateta 54)
MD 2 League Phase – Palace 0-1 AEK Larnaca
MD 3 League Phase – Palace 3-1 AZ Alkmaar (Lacroix 22, Sarr 45+4, 57)
MD 6 League Phase – Palace 2-2 KuPS (Uche 5, Devenny 76)
Play off round 2nd leg – Palace 2-0 Zrinjski (Lacroix 36, Guessand 90+3)
Round of 16 first leg – Palace 0-0 AEK Larnaca
Quarter Final first leg – Palace 3-0 Fiorentina (Mateta 24 p, Mitchell 31, Sarr 90)
Interestingly, the Eagles have managed to keep four clean sheets across their home matches in the competition this season, including three in a row.
They have also scored eight out of their 20 goals in the Conference League at Selhurst Park, a rate of 40%.
Although the second leg of the semi-final will be at home, it is important to see how the fixtures that Palace have played at Selhurst Park for the first leg played out.
In the qualifier against Fredrikstad, Oliver Glasner’s side held on for a 0-0 draw to book their spot in the competition outright.
In the round of 16 against AEK Larnaca, the Eagles needed extra time to eventually get past the nine-player Cypriot side.
The quarter-final against Fiorentina is a perfect example of this, with the three-goal cushion from the first leg eventually being stretched even further to four goals thanks to Ismaila Sarr,
Despite two consolation goals from Albert Gudmundsson and Cher Ndour, it was largely comfortable for the Premier League side.
To identify whether the idea that playing the second leg at home is an advantage, the quarter-finals of the Conference League helps to show this.
First leg results
Rayo Vallecano 3-0 AEK Athens
Crystal Palace 3-0 Fiorentina
Mainz 2-0 Strasbourg
Shakhtar Donetsk 3-0 AZ Alkmaar
Looking at the first leg results of the quarter-finals, every single team that played at home were victorious by more than a single goal margin. Three of the fixtures ended 3-0, with only Mainz vs Strasbourg ending 2-0.
So, how much did the reverse home advantage make a difference in the second leg?
Second leg results
AZ Alkmaar 2-2 Shakhtar Donetsk (2-5 aggregate)
AEK Athens 3-1 Rayo Vallecano (3-4 aggregate)
Strasbourg 4-0 Mainz (4-2 aggregate)
Fiorentina 2-1 Crystal Palace (2-4 aggregate)
Although it was not a clean sweep like the first leg with four wins, every team that played at home in the second leg did not lose; like the first leg, they each scored more than one goal at home.
There was also one first-leg result overturned, with Strasbourg scoring four goals in 50 minutes to knock out ten-player Mainz.
Goals from Sebastian Nanasi, Abdoul Ouattara, Julio Enciso, and Emanuel Emegha helped to set up a semi-final with Rayo Vallecano.
Shakhtar Donetsk’s away form against English teams
In relevance to the semi-final, Shakhtar’s record against English sides does bode well for Crystal Palace.
In 10 attempts, they have never won an away game against English opposition in Europe, losing seven and drawing three.
Shakhtar Donetsk away games in Europe vs English opposition
2000 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Arsenal 3-2 Shakhtar Donetsk
2009 – UEFA Cup Round of 32
Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
2010 – UEFA Europa League Round of 32
Fulham 1-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
2010 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Arsenal 5-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
2012 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Chelsea 3-2 Shakhtar Donetsk
2013 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Manchester United 1-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
2017 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Manchester City 2-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
2018 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Manchester City 6-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
2019 – UEFA Champions League Group Stage
Manchester City 1-1 Shakhtar Donetsk
2024 – UEFA Champions League Group Phase
Arsenal 1-0 Shakhtar Donetsk
Crystal Palace can take positives from this record, plus the fact that they have yet to lose a knockout home game in Europe.