Crystal Palace became the latest Premier League team to qualify for Europe with their Conference League victory, but the news has caused a headache for EFL leaders.
Crystal Palace win the Conference League title at Leipzig (Image: Getty Images)
Crystal Palace’s historic success in the Conference League has left EFL leaders with big questions in the Carabao Cup ahead of next season. The Eagles won their first European trophy with a 1-0 victory over Rayo Vallecano in Leipzig.
In addition to the trophy, Palace also qualified for the Europa League. The Eagles are one of nine Premier League teams scheduled to play in continental Europe next season. And while England’s top-flight European representation remains healthy, it is something that EFL leaders will have to think seriously about.
All European clubs are scheduled to take part in the third round of the Carabao Cup, but there is an odd number of them so there is a need to level the competition. Normally, the qualifying round is played between the lowest-placed teams in the competition, depending on their league performance this season.
Naturally, that would be Tranmere Rovers, Crawley Town, Rochdale and York. And while that is still expected to happen, the regional division of the first round of competition is causing problems.
Due to geographical location, there is no natural division between the four teams. Crawley will be in the south side of the draw, but who their opponents will be will be determined later.
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Of the other three schools, Tranmere are the furthest south, so they will face Crawley, with Rochdale and York likely to play. However, Tranmere is located on the west coast, so it is not as easy to access as any other club.
There is also the possibility of an open draw, which is expected to be held at the same time as the first round draw of the tournament.
This situation is not entirely unprecedented, with a qualifying round also taking place last season as a record number of Premier League teams qualified for Europe. But the decision would have been much easier with a simpler north-south split, with Barnet playing Newport and Accrington Stanley playing Oldham Athletic.
Carabao Cup will be forced to hold qualifying rounds again next season (Image: Getty Images)
Newport and Accrington Stanley both advanced from their respective ties to advance to the correct regional side in the second round draw. In the end, Manchester City won the competition with a 2-0 win against Arsenal at Wembley Stadium, with Nico O’Reilly scoring twice.
Their victory directly contributed to the strengthening of European teams, with Brighton & Hove Albion, who finished eighth in the Premier League, qualifying for the Conference League play-offs instead.
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