Oliver Glasner joins Nottingham Forest after contract expiry, sparking backlash from Crystal Palace fans

"Legacy ruined", "stunned" and a "soap opera" — these were just some of the reactions from Crystal Palace fans on social media after news broke that the club's greatest ever manager, Oliver Glasner, was set to join newly-adopted rivals Nottingham Forest.

Glasner, whose appointment has since been confirmed, left the Eagles once his contract expired after a historic two-and-a-half seasons at the south London club. During his tenure, he led Palace to:

• FA Cup glory
• Their first-ever European qualification
• Community Shield victory
• Conference League triumph in their debut European campaign

The Austrian was serenaded out of Selhurst Park on the final day of the Premier League season, with the three trophies he won serving as a lasting reminder of his achievements.

But Glasner's switch to Forest means he has moved to the club that replaced the Eagles in the Europa League last season, turning Forest into Palace's unlikely rivals.

Why Is There Bad Feeling Between the Clubs?

The tension began in the days after Palace won an unexpected FA Cup, beating Manchester City in May 2025.

After securing their first major trophy, supporters in south London eagerly anticipated Europa League football at Selhurst Park for the first time. However, Uefa deemed that the Eagles had breached the body's multi-club ownership rules, as then co-owner John Textor held stakes in both Palace and French side Lyon, who had also qualified for the Europa League.

During that process, Nottingham Forest wrote to Uefa to "ask for clarity" after "expressing their concerns" about Palace's place in the Europa League, highlighting the ownership structure involving Textor.

If the Eagles were demoted from the Europa League to the Conference League, Forest would take Palace's place — which is exactly what happened.

Despite an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) and Textor selling his stake to Woody Johnson, Palace were officially dropped to the lower tier of European football, with Forest taking their place in the Europa League.

Chairman Steve Parish described it as "probably one of the greatest injustices that has ever happened in European football."

That sense of injustice followed Palace into the season. Supporters in the Holmesdale Road end unfurled a banner depicting Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis in an unfavourable manner — Palace were fined £50,000 for the banner. Palace fans also adopted an unflattering song during European games about Uefa, former owner Textor, and Marinakis.

Glasner's Relationship with Palace

It was not always smooth sailing between Palace and Glasner, who is known to speak his mind when things are not going as he wants.

The rollercoaster nature of the season did not stop after the European demotion. The club sold Eberechi Eze, one of their star players, to Arsenal in a deal worth in the region of £67m.

Palace also almost lost key player and captain Marc Guehi before Glasner intervened on deadline day. The England international was set to join Liverpool until Palace pulled the plug late on deadline day, after a move for his intended replacement — Brighton's Igor Julio — failed to materialise.

It was reported that Glasner had threatened to quit if Parish had sanctioned Guehi's move to the Anfield club. The manager was left frustrated that Palace, preparing for their debut European campaign — which would include at least six additional games in the league phase — seemed willing to sanction departures rather than retain and strengthen the squad.