LONDON (AP) — The Conference League concludes its first phase with Thursday’s sixth round, with Strasbourg the only team to have already booked a direct place into the round of 16.
The French team is in first place with four wins and one draw, closing in on Breidablik of Iceland at home.
The 36 clubs in the European tertiary leagues will play six different opponents and will be ranked in a single standings format. Clubs in the Champions League and Europa League will each play eight matches.
The top eight teams in the conference league advance directly to the Round of 16 in March. Teams ranked 9th through 24th will advance to a two-leg knockout playoff in February. The bottom 12 teams will be eliminated.
Crystal Palace, who made their European debut after winning the FA Cup last season, sit in ninth place, one point behind AEK Athens, Samspor, Sparta Prague, Rayo Vallecano and Mainz.
The Eagles could advance directly to the last 16 with a home win against another newcomer, Finland’s KuPS, at Selhurst Park.
Two-time runners-up Fiorentina belong to Lausanne Sport. AZ Alkmaar from the Netherlands, Celje from Slovenia and AEK Larnaca from Cyprus also need to win their final games to have a chance of progressing directly.
Alkmaar will play Poland’s Jagiellonia, Celje will face Shelbourne and AEK Larnaca will face Macedonian side Shkendija.
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