Oliver Glasner expressed in his first interview as the Eagles’ manager his optimism about Crystal Palace’s potential.
“To be here, I’m very happy,” Glasner said to Palace TV. “I’m quite eager and anticipating the upcoming days, weeks, and months. I’m thrilled to be starting with a home game against Burnley at Selhurst Park.
“There are numerous aspects of Palace that thrill me, including Selhurst Park, the supporters, our outstanding team, and our conversations regarding the club’s vision with the Chairman, Sporting Director, and Owners.” We can work together on this project, which I believe is really exciting, and it’s about to get started.
“We will put in great effort to realize our goal of bringing this vision to life as it is our responsibility.”
In order for the team to expedite their efforts to name a new manager, Roy Hodgson, Glasner’s predecessor, resigned from his position on Monday afternoon.
“I wish Roy all the best, but first and foremost, the most important thing is that he is healthy again and doing well,” Glasner added.
“I’ve never begun a season as a manager before in my professional life. Although the circumstances are different, they still exist, thus in my opinion, it’s critical to make the most of them.
Although it was originally intended to begin in the summer, talks have already begun in the fall.
Though it arrived sooner than expected, not much has changed. We will do all in our power to prepare the players for the first game against Burnley, which is scheduled for three training sessions, before we attempt to win three points at Selhurst Park.
Arriving at Palace with an outstanding track record in the Austrian and German Bundesliga competitions, as well as in Europe – winning the 2021/22 UEFA Europa League with Eintracht Frankfurt – Glasner is looking forward to the challenge of the Premier League.
Describing his footballing principles and philosophy, Glasner explained: “It’s also important for me always to have the same important things: honesty, passion for football, a good spirit in the whole team – not just the players, the staff – and to create a great team spirit.
“Then, I think we can talk about football, the basics are always good characters, good team spirit and a good environment for all of us.
“My philosophy is very easy: it’s scoring goals because that’s why, as I tell the players very often, we all started playing football. Nobody went on the pitch when he was a young kid to defend!
“Everybody wants to have the ball and wants to score a goal and then celebrate together with his friends, so this is why we all started playing football.
“I think we never should forget this because this is what the fans want to see: that we fight together and we play together to score a goal. This is the headline over the football philosophy.
“Then, of course, it’s how we defend: sometimes it’s a high press, sometimes it’s a low block – but [overall] it’s all about how we can score goals.”
Regarding his expectations of the rigours of the Premier League, Glasner explained: “I’ve watched many games, some live in the stadiums, many on the TV screen.
“I also have the experience of playing with Frankfurt against West Ham in the semi-final of the Europa League, and playing Tottenham in the Champions League, so of course there are tough games, but also nice games, great stadiums and great atmospheres.
“There’s a lot of intensity, but this is what we’re all looking for: challenges. Maybe the referees would whistle for more fouls in Germany or in other countries in Europe – there’s a lot of passion and a lot of duels – but [here] I think it’s all about football.
“There are maybe the best players in the world playing in the Premier League. There are maybe the best coaches in the world, so the teams are really well-prepared, and this is the challenge that we are looking for and the challenge that I am looking for: to also improve and to develop myself.”
Having been at Goodison Park to witness Palace’s 1-1 draw against Everton on Monday night, and having watched many of the Eagles’ matches this season, Glasner has already seen plenty of positives to work with in his new squad.
“This season, the circumstances have been a little bit difficult, with many injured players and key players [who have been] injured for many games, but I see a team with great characters,” he confirmed.
“When I saw the game at Everton, there was really good spirit in the team, always supporting each other. I saw the basics, where we can build up the philosophy and where we can build up what we want to do, how we want to play.
“I could see this in every single [Palace] game, also in the losses, because there you can see a lot of the character of a team, and I saw and I’m convinced that they are great characters and great players.
“Now, of course, when you don’t win many games [recently], and this is the same in every club, they have a lack of confidence. This is maybe the first thing: we want to give them their confidence back so that they show their abilities.”
Glasner’s tenure begins in earnest with the aforementioned home match against Burnley at Selhurst Park this Saturday.
The Austrian, who has led sides out in front of some of Europe’s most impressive atmospheres, is looking forward to experiencing that of SE25.
He said: “I’ve been here once in autumn watching a game, and I was really excited about the atmosphere, but it is one [thing] sitting in the stand, and another is being close to the sidelines, so it will be emotionally different.
“I think that’s also one reason why I’m a manager, a coach: to feel these emotions here, to feel this atmosphere. This is something you cannot buy. You have to live it, and this is why I really like being a manager.
“For me it’s important that now we get to know each other, that we create a working attitude, a way of playing, a way to get the best out of any player. These are the short-term goals, of course: to get as many points as we can, to win as many games as we can.
“For me, this is very important: that we play the same way here at Selhurst Park and in the away games, so that we always trust in us, we always trust in our teammates, and we always trust in what we do. This will start with the first practice.
“We’re starting. We’re all looking forward to it. I’m really convinced that we’ll reach our goal, that we can improve as a team, that we can improve individually – and then that we’ll enjoy our time together.”
