This is uncharted territory for Crystal Palace.
Never before have the south Londoners occupied a top-four spot this deep into a Premier League season; never before have they been involved in a European campaign; never before have they defended a piece of major silverware.
Oliver Glasner's reign is proving to be an era like no other at the club. So just how far can the Austrian take them?
Unprecedented heights
"It’s a great time to be a Palace fan," the club’s chairman Steve Parish told The Athletic last week. "The club is in the best place it’s ever been in every single metric you can look at."
Indeed, Palace are in the rare position of fourth spot - the dizzying heights of which are entirely unfamiliar – as they prepare to welcome Premier League powerhouses Manchester City on Sunday.
Since returning to the top flight in 2013/14, Palace have never finished higher than 10th or lower than 15th.
Crystal Palace's final PL positions since 2013/14
| Season | Position | Season | Position |
| 2013/14 | 11 | 2019/20 | 14 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014/15 | 10 | 2020/21 | 14 |
| 2015/16 | 15 | 2021/22 | 12 |
| 2016/17 | 14 | 2022/23 | 11 |
| 2017/18 | 11 | 2023/24 | 10 |
| 2018/19 | 12 | 2024/25 | 12 |
That Glasner's side currently occupy a UEFA Champions League berth is unheard of. Prior to the current campaign, the latest Palace had ever sat as high as fourth was after eight games of the 2015/16 (5 October) and 2019/20 (16 October) seasons.
To be situated so high entering mid-December and after 15 matches is unprecedented.
Palace's best Premier League starts
| Season | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Final position |
| 2025/26 | 15 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 20 | 12 | 8 | 26 | – |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015/16 | 15 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 23 | 15th |
| 2019/20 | 15 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 14 | 18 | -4 | 21 | 14th |
| 1997/98 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 15 | 17 | -2 | 19 | 20th |
| 1994/95 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 6 | 15 | 18 | -2 | 19 | 19th |
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After winning the FA Cup last season to secure European football, they continue to go from strength to strength, with only three Premier League defeats and the second-best defensive record (behind only league leaders Arsenal).
Making their UEFA Conference League bow, they are almost assured of at least a place in the playoffs of the knockout stage with one league phase game to spare.
A settled side
Glasner's arrival has seen a number of players exhibit the best football of their careers.
Jean-Philippe Mateta has become one of the Premier League’s most lethal strikers and belatedly earned international honours with France.
Signed for relatively modest fees, Daniel Munoz and Ismaila Sarr have proven themselves capable of challenging the best in the league, Adam Wharton continues to impress, and Marc Guehi's abundant suitors in global football are well known.
One of the main reasons behind Palace’s defensive superiority is their consistency of selection.
As detailed in this piece, Glasner has only once altered the personnel in his back three – when Guehi missed the Brighton & Hove Albion match through injury – otherwise using the same unit in 93.3 per cent of their games.
Most common Premier League 2025/26 centre-back partnerships
| Team | Centre-back partnership | Starts | % of league matches |
| Liverpool | Konate – Van Dijk | 15 | 100 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crystal Palace | Richards – Guehi – Lacroix | 14 | 93.3 |
| Brighton | Van Hecke – Dunk | 14 | 93.3 |
| Everton | Tarkowski – Keane | 14 | 93.3 |
| Bournemouth | Diakite – Senesi | 11 | 73.3 |
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Across the entire pitch, Palace’s 14 changes to their starting XI so far this season is the lowest of any Premier League club, but that lack of ability to rotate might also prove their downfall.
Having to contend with European football for the first time in the club’s history, Glasner has repeatedly spoken about the need to increase a squad depth that is certain to be tested further by injuries to Munoz and Sarr.
The latter of those could yet be involved against City on Saturday, but is then likely to be involved in the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).
No Premier League team has played as many as Palace’s 25 matches across all competitions this season, while the club features the top four players for minutes played across all competitions.
Most minutes played across all competitions 2025/26
| Player | Club | Minutes |
| Maxence Lacroix | Palace | 2,250 |
|---|---|---|
| Marc Guehi | Palace | 2,085 |
| Daniel Munoz | Palace | 2,047 |
| Dean Henderson | Palace | 1,980 |
| Guglielmo Vicario | Spurs | 1,980 |
| Virgil van Dijk | Liverpool | 1,980 |
| Dominik Szoboszlai | Liverpool | 1,980 |
| Pedro Porro | Spurs | 1,937 |
| Jean-Philippe Mateta | Palace | 1,930 |
Currently in the middle of a gruelling 15 matches in just 49 days (from 22 November to 10 January), Glasner has already suggested he will field a weakened team in Palace’s final league phase game of the Conference League next week as he attempts to find ways to rest his players.
Taste the sweet honey
This marks the start of a season-defining period for Glasner's side.
On Sunday, they will host second-placed Man City, who have lost just two of their last 20 Premier League games against Palace and are unbeaten at Selhurst Park for more than a decade. But Palace did, of course, memorably triumph over Pep Guardiola’s side in last season’s FA Cup final.
Before the end of January, Palace also face four sides competing for European places in the Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur, Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Chelsea - as well as Arsenal in the EFL Cup quarter-finals.
Crystal Palace's next five PL fixtures
It will be a true test of Palace's ability to compete with the top flight's best teams. But this is precisely what they want.
"They [the players] aren’t happy to be 15th anymore," Glasner told The Athletic last week.
"They have tasted the sweet honey. If you listen to their interviews, they want to play European football because they are now experiencing how nice it is."
"If you have soup every day, it's nice, but as soon as you have beef, you want more beef. That’s the process. It’s not easy, it’s challenging, but it’s nice. Otherwise, it’s boring, just doing, every day and year, the same stuff, just surviving in the Premier League."