Crystal Palace earned a 3-1 advantage to take back to south London in the first leg of their Europa Conference League semi-final against Shakhtar Donetsk.
Palace, in pursuit of a second major trophy under Oliver Glasner, raced into the lead in the first 21 seconds when Ismaila Sarr combined neatly with Jean-Philippe Mateta to sweep into the far corner - making Sarr the joint top scorer in the competition and owner of the record-fastest goal.
The visitors were then undone from a careless set-piece just after the break, allowing Shakhtar to win first and second contact from a corner, finished from close range by Oleh Ocheretko. Pressure built, as Arda Turan's side pressed and dominated the ball. The tie looked to be turning.
But Palace were happy to sit in their shape out of possession, retaining a constant threat on the counter, and missed a succession of chances before finally making one count. Sarr and Mateta drew a fantastic double save from Dmytro Riznyk and the latter hit the post before Daichi Kamada struck a well-taken second.
The way the second half unfolded suited Palace perfectly, a stylistic masterclass from Glasner. They were physically too tough for Shakhtar to break down from open play and possessed too much pace on the counter not to make good on their threat eventually.
Kamada ensured they did. The midfielder turned over the ball inside his own half and spotted the surging run of substitute Jorgen Strand Larsen, who beat Riznyk with a composed dink. A professional Palace display to nail the away leg, one that surely has them overwhelming favourites to reach the final in Leipzig on May 27.
Your Site' Laura Hunter:
This is one of those games where the stats somewhat skew what actually happened. If you analysed the possession numbers and total shots in isolation you would be led to believe Shakhtar dominated. But it was Palace who created more sustained and better threat. The game plan was to hurt on the counter and it played to all of Palace's best strengths.
xG values are normally the giveaway in the stats stakes: Shakhtar 1.06-2.31 Palace. To create so much with only a 29 per cent share of possession is very impressive.
Palace are in pole position to progress, making good on their pre-tournament tag of favourites. Perhaps it will spell the happiest of endings for outgoing Glasner, whose time as boss would reach a fitting conclusion if it was to be in Leipzig. His legacy, in fact, would surely be defined by the outcome. A second major trophy would be beyond most fans' wildest imagination.
Crystal Palace head coach Oliver Glasner to TNT Sports:
"I'm very happy and very pleased with the performance. Credit to the players - they stuck to the plan and worked very hard, every single one in defence. We didn't give them a lot.
"They were a big threat from set-plays. This is where we conceded, but I think we were also the same when we went forward. When we were on the attack, it was always very threatening.
"Overall, we are very pleased with the performance, but it's just the first step. I believe we have to perform even better at home to go to the final."
Crystal Palace striker Jorgen Strand Larsen to TNT Sports:
"I needed that, I was unlucky last game against Liverpool, so I felt the confidence had dropped a little bit, but always kept on going and it is tough as we have two good players fighting for one spot. To come here and score a goal is just an amazing feeling.
"You could see after we scored early that they are a good team. We had to stay in, not lose our heads. We are 3-1 up but there is still a game to play. Important for me and the team to get a third.
"We know the structure of the manager and the team. We had to accept they are a good team so we had to sit a bit deeper today but we did well on the counter attack - and if we were even better we could have scored more."
Before next Thursday's return leg at Selhurst Park, Crystal Palace go to European-chasing Bournemouth in the Premier League on Sunday, live on Your Site; kick-off at 2pm.
