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

## Our Senegalese Sarr

> Ismaïla Sarr became the club’s third signing of the 2024/25 summer transfer window after joining on a five-year deal from Olympique de Marseille.

The 26-year-old attacker possesses plenty of experience of English football, having spent four years at Watford – recording 34 goals and 22 assists in 131 games – prior to joining Marseille, whom he helped reach the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League last season.

Sarr's career began in French football with Metz, before moving to Rennes and leading the club into Europe, as well as winning their first Coupe de France in almost half a century.

At international level, he has been a mainstay of the Senegal national side, earning 64 caps, scoring 13 goals and winning the Africa Cup of Nations in 2021.

His career has also been defined by his eye for the spectacular, having won Goal of the Season awards in both the Football League and the Europa League.

Sarr was ever-present in every Premier League matchday squad in his first season at the club, playing in all 38 games, while also featuring in a further nine cup games. He scored 11 goals across all competitions, with eight additional assists - including a stunning effort against rivals Brighton & Hove Albion and a brace against Aston Villa in the FA Cup semi-final.

2022/23, Watford (v West Bromwich Albion)

EFL Goal of the Season

Watford, 2020/21

Player of the Season

Players' Player of the Season

2018/19, Rennes (v Jablonec)

UEFA Europa League Goal of the Season

December 2024

Crystal Palace Player of the Month

Sarr

Instagram

Appearances

Goals

Sarr Previews Burnley

All Angles of Ismaïla Sarr's Goal v Brighton

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

Extended Highlights: Brighton 0-1 Crystal Palace | Palace TV +

Match Action: Brighton 0-1 Crystal Palace

Strand Larsen presents Sarr with Premier League Man of the Match

Ismaïla Sarr Returns From AFCON

Pre-match Press Conference | RC Strasbourg (A)

Extended Highlights: Crystal Palace 3-1 AZ Alkmaar | Palace TV+

The Full 90: Crystal Palace v AZ Alkmaar | Palace TV+

Sarr wins October's Goal of the Month

Match Highlights: Crystal Palace 3-1 AZ Alkmaar

Goal of the month contenders | October 2025

Extended Highlights: Liverpool 0-3 Crystal Palace | Palace TV+

Match Action: Liverpool 0-3 Crystal Palace

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

Speaking the morning after Palace's frustrating 1-1 draw at Zrinjski Mostar – in which the Eagles took the lead at Bijeli Brijeg Stadium, but could not hang onto their advantage – the Manager says his side must seek to return to the solid foundations which brought about seven Premier League clean sheets from the first 14 league games of the season.

The opportunity to do so is not long off – with a quick turnaround ahead of the visit of a resurgent Wolverhampton Wanderers side, unbeaten in their last three matches, to Selhurst Park on Sunday (22nd February, 14:00 GMT) afternoon.

**Read on below for the key talking points...**

Pre-match Press Conference | Wolverhampton (H)

#### On whether Maxence Lacroix would miss Sunday’s game, after coming off injured on Thursday…

How it looked like yesterday, yes, but again, we will assess him further with training in the afternoon [on Friday], after the press conference and then, we will see.

But yeah, he had to be subbed because he had problems with his adductor and he mentioned it at half-time already, so it doesn't look really good.

All others look fine, but nobody will come back.

#### On balancing European and domestic football…

I don't think that Crystal Palace is pretty much safe when I see the teams who are behind us, when I see how they are performing, especially West Ham, really getting point after point, and all the others as well. 

There are teams like Nottingham [Forest], they were seventh last year; there's a team like Tottenham, who won the Europa League; and a team like Brighton.

I think it would be completely wrong to say now we go all in the Conference League and forget about the Premier League. I think it's a very important game now against Wolverhampton [Wanderers].

It looks like we’ll have to change the back three again. This was mentioned so often, it was our foundation for everything we had, our back line and the togetherness. Right at the moment, we are not that consistent in our defence, because also in all the last games we scored, but we had just one win, and this was when we had the clean sheet.

We are struggling to get clean sheets because we are making too many mistakes. This is what we have to improve, definitely, and the next chance is on Sunday.

#### On Wolves, unbeaten in their last three games…

I think when we played them away [a 2-0 win for Palace], I mentioned before that they are playing better than all their results, but they were in this negative run and it was so tough for them.

I still think they have many good players. They showed it against Arsenal. Also, they showed a great belief after being 2-0 down, coming back.

They are now quite consistent in the way they are playing. Consistency always helps. They got a few players back from long-term injuries, being now more in the rhythm, like [Yerson] Mosquera, for example, in defence.

And, yes, they have a very good midfield, with Brazilian international players, and they have huge pace on both wings, with [Jackson] Tchatchoua and [Hugo] Bueno, and they have a very physical back three, with [Ladislav] Krejčí, [Santiago] Bueno and Mosquera.

And up front, [Mateus] Mané, a young boy who needed time to adapt to the Premier League, and then [Tolu] Arokodare, a very tall Nigerian international, and then it's now getting back an experienced [Adam] Armstrong – I was told that he was the top scorer in the Championship. 

It is a good mix of physicality in the back three and the striker, of huge pace in the wing-back positions, and two Brazilian internationals in centre midfield – so they are a good team.

#### On Jørgen Strand Larsen, who will face his former club on Sunday…

Yes, of course, he came in and showed [it]. He had a great game against Brighton, even without scoring – the energy he brought into the team and onto the pitch was amazing to see. And then, of course, his two great goals against Burnley.

Yesterday, he struggled a little bit to find his chances, but he could have two assists – he had one, and the second one Adam [Wharton] hit the post in the second half.

And now it's the same. He has to get used to the players around him. It's a little bit different, and now we have to find the structure in the attack again. When you play with two new players of three, it's just new.

We have to find the structure in the back three, and that makes six positions in the centre of the pitch, and this is where we are struggling right now.

#### On Strand Larsen’s link-up play with Ismaïla Sarr, which led to Palace’s goal last night…

I think Ismaïla is playing a fantastic season for us. Right now he’s our top scorer in all competitions. He’s scored three goals in the last four games, and Jørgen two goals.

He now has 11 goals in the entire season. He never had a season like this before at any club in the top league, and even [after] he missed many games with AFCON.

Ismaïla is very important for us with the way he's playing, he always gets into finishing positions and scoring goals, and Jørgen is the more physical player in the middle. 

So, yes, it could be a good match.

#### On fellow new signing Brennan Johnson…

It’s the same – it's now encouraging him and supporting him to get the confidence.

He had a very good week in training, that's why he started yesterday. He has a great finish, he has a good feeling of where to move. But, to be honest, in the games, we can see he doesn't feel so comfortable in this position, and he has to get used more to his teammates.

It was a great situation in the second-half when Daichi passed the ball to him exactly, and then he wanted to play a one-two with Jørgen, and Jørgen just was surprised and then couldn't pass to him, otherwise he would have a one-on-one against the goalkeeper.

And in this situation, we could see, ‘OK, they don't play together for four or five months.’ When you know each other well, they want the balls where they are moving. 

This is to be patient with the new players, and to integrate them step by step.

#### Match Details

**Crystal Palace v Wolverhampton Wanderers**

- Sunday, 22nd February
- 14:00 GMT
- Premier League
- Selhurst Park
- [Live audio commentary on Palace TV+.](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/supporters/palace-tv-plus/)

At his pre-match press conference ahead of the visit of Wolverhampton Wanderers to Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon, Oliver Glasner said Crystal Palace must recapture the defensive solidity of earlier in the season to reestablish consistent form.

Glasner on Lacroix fitness, Wolves' strengths, and Strand Larsen & Sarr

Crystal Palace v Wolverhampton Wanderers (2026-02-22)

Crystal Palace

UEFA Conference League

Zrinjski Mostar

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Wolverhampton Wanderers

Premier League

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After the Eagles were unable to add to their first-half opener from Ismaïla Sarr – despite dominating possession and the shot count – the Crystal Palace captain admitted his side’s frustration to be pegged back by Karlo Abramovic’s equaliser for the Bosnian champions, but says there is all to play for [in SE25 next Thursday](https://www.cpfc.co.uk/news/tickets/crystal-palace-zrinjski-mostar-ticket-details-february-2026/).

Henderson said: “The first-half we started the game really well, on the front foot. We made runs in behind and utilised that space.

“Obviously we worked hard to get the goal. It's always difficult to get that first goal, but obviously we got the breakthrough and it was disappointing not to add more.

“\[For Zrinjski’s equaliser\] we got caught on the break. They did well to get back into the game, but it was sort of our forced error that they capitalised on, so it's disappointing not to take the win back to Selhurst. 

“It's half-time now, so it's all level. We’re looking forward to the return leg at home next week.”

We’ve been in tough times before, and we’ve come out the other end of it

On the combative nature of the contest, played in front of a vociferous Bijeli Brijeg Stadium, Henderson added: “Obviously that was difficult tonight, but we've got to learn from it and move on, because it will be a different game next week. We’ve just got to make sure we’re prepared for that.

“It’s just about keeping people’s spirits high and remembering we’ve been in tough times before, and we’ve come out the other end of it. There’s always light at the end of the tunnel so we’ve got to rally round.

“The team spirit is growing, we’ve got some new players in now and some new energy, which is nice. We’ve got to play with more confidence and not let the doom and gloom get on top of us.

“It's not going to be easy, it's not just going to be given to us, and we can’t just turn up and expect to win 3 or 4-0. That’s what we’ve got to learn from. The Larnaca game was probably one of those that opened our eyes to it, and I'm not saying we could have come here today and easily won, because that's not the case, obviously it's a difficult place to come – but we've got to play at our best tempo and make sure we give it our best shot.”

Dean Henderson has given his verdict on our 1-1 draw at HSK Zrinjski Mostar on Thursday evening, which sets up a vital second leg at Selhurst Park next week.

Henderson looks ahead to return leg against Zrinjski

Zrinjski Mostar v Crystal Palace (2026-02-19)

Richards reflects on Mostar

The Eagles dominated possession and created some presentable openings in Mostar, but led by just a goal to nil at half-time, when Ismaïla Sarr struck crisply from Jørgen Strand Larsen’s clever lay-off.

Yet mistakes early in the second-half allowed Karlo Abramovic to smash the hosts level at a boisterous Bijeli Brijeg Stadium, and try as they might to reestablish their lead, Palace were forced to settle for a 1-1 draw to take back to Selhurst Park next week.

Richards told Palace TV: “I think on paper, when you look at the quality of the teams, it seems pretty straightforward. But coming here, in a hostile environment, it's a tough pitch to play on… we’re a little bit disappointed with the result, but also a 1-1 is also something you can take into the next leg with a lot of optimism.

“I think it's mixed emotions, but I think in the grand scheme of things, we have to take care of business at home now.

“There’s also a reason they're in the Conference League. They're a good team. They defended well.

“Again, we didn't make the most of our chances and I think defensively we made a few mistakes.

“But regardless, I think it's a performance that we can work on and we can continue with. But a bit frustrating that we kind of lacked a little bit in both areas this evening.”

Thank you for coming out. It wasn't an easy journey. I heard and saw on Twitter that it took a lot to get here, so we really appreciate everybody

Palace were backed by another outstanding away support in Europe, with supporters making the most of their trip to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Two crucial home games are to follow in the next week, and Richards noted: “We definitely saw and heard everybody.

“Again, thank you for coming out. It wasn't an easy journey. I heard and saw on Twitter that it took a lot to get here, so we really appreciate everybody.

“We’re a club, but we're also a family, so we need everybody contributing when it comes to games. And again, we very much feel y'all's momentum and y'all's spirit. Hopefully we can continue to have that.”

A 1-1 draw away to Zrinjski Mostar left Chris Richards and Crystal Palace frustrated they could not make more of their chances – but with a platform to build upon in the second leg of their UEFA Conference League play-off round.

First-team

First-team

Glasner on Lacroix fitness, Wolves' strengths, and Strand Larsen & Sarr

Henderson looks ahead to return leg against Zrinjski

Richards: We now have to take care of business at home

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7Ismaïla
Sarr

First-team

First-team

Glasner on Lacroix fitness, Wolves' strengths, and Strand Larsen & Sarr

Henderson looks ahead to return leg against Zrinjski

Richards: We now have to take care of business at home

Shop Palace Shirts

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7Ismaïla
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