English Premier League outfit Crystal Palace begin their first-ever European campaign with a stern test against Ukrainian champions Dynamo Kyiv on Matchday 1 of the 2025/26 UEFA Conference League.
Ayomide Oguntimehin provides the lowdown for the October 2nd clash at the Motor Lublin Arena.
Dynamo Kyiv vs Crystal Palace Match Preview
Dynamo Kyiv won a record 17th-league title last season, hence qualifying for the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds. However, they lost to Pafos in the third qualifying round and dropped to the Europa League playoffs phase.
Their European struggles continued with a 3-2 aggregate defeat to Maccabi Tel Aviv, which ensured that they would play in the third tier of European club competition instead. In the 2024/25 campaign, they failed to make it out of the Europa League group phase, after suffering six defeats from their eight matches.
Crystal Palace, on the other hand, head into a first-ever campaign in Europe having won the English FA Cup and defeated Fredrikstad 1-0 on aggregate in the play-off round. They are one of the most in-form team in Europe presently and also have won of the longest unbeaten streak among clubs in Europe’s top-five leagues. Their 18-game unbeaten streak is a joint club-record, and they will be eyeing a big performance against their Ukrainian opponents on Thursday.
Dynamo Kyiv vs Crystal Palace Head-to-Head Record
This will be a first-ever meeting between both teams, while Dynamo Kyiv have won only five of their previous 30 meetings against English teams in European competitions.
Recent Form: Dynamo Kyiv
Dynamo Kyiv have improved in recent outings and are currently on a six-match unbeaten run in all competitions. However, they won only one of their eight matches in Europe last season, in what was a hugely disappointing campaign.
The Ukrainian side also have a decent home record and have claimed victories in three of their last five home games in all competitions.
🔜 Наступний матч
⚽️ #ДинамоКрісталПелас
🏆 Ліга Конференцій, 1-ий тур
🗓️ 02.10
🏟️ «Мотор Люблін Арена»
⏰ 19:45 (за київським часом)
🖥️ MEGOGO⚪️🔵 #FCDK pic.twitter.com/PAxj0Gpl4V
— FC Dynamo Kyiv (@DynamoKyiv) September 30, 2025
Recent Form: Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace have a very impressive record and have not lost in their last 18 games in all competitions.
They did not concede over two legs in their qualification match and have also kept three clean sheets in four away matches this season.
Player to Watch: Christantus Uche (Crystal Palace)
Versatile midfielder Christantus Uche joined the Eagles in the summer, but is yet to fully make an impact at the club following a couple of substitute appearances.
However, his dribbling skills and pace could cause problems for Dynamo Kyiv’s defense, while his versatility could also be important, especially in games of this magnitude.
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Best Betting Odds
Away (Crystal Palace) to Win or Draw – 1.20 (via Betway)
Prediction
Crystal Palace are favourites and are expected to continue their impressive run with another positive result in this fixture.
