Crystal Palace captain Dean Henderson insists everything is still firmly in the balance after the Eagles were held to a 1-1 draw away to HSK Zrinjski Mostar on Thursday night.
Palace made a strong start at the Bijeli Brijeg Stadium and took control early on, eventually turning pressure into a first-half breakthrough through Ismaila Sarr.
However, despite dominating the ball and creating the clearer chances, the Eagles were left frustrated when Karlo Abramovic struck back for the Bosnian champions after the break.
Speaking after the final whistle, Henderson admitted the visitors were disappointed not to take a lead back to south London but stressed that the tie remains wide open heading into next week’s return leg at Selhurst Park.
“The first-half we started the game really well, on the front foot. We made runs in behind and utilised that space,” he said.
“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.”
The Palace skipper also reflected on the intense atmosphere in Mostar, acknowledging it as a valuable learning experience for a squad still growing together.
“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 Skipper continued: “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.”
With the first leg finely poised, Palace now turn their attention to delivering a decisive performance on home soil, knowing that progression is firmly within their grasp.
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