Inigo Perez has urged Rayo Vallecano to “keep that fire inside” when his perceived Spanish underdogs take on Crystal Palace in Wednesday night’s Conference League final.
The two sides have drawn plenty of comparisons. Both play in stadia situated in the centre of working-class neighbourhoods and possess spirited fanbases with strong identities who have travelled to Leipzig crossing their fingers it will be their team who will prevail in a first major European final.
Perez, 38, was appointed at the LaLiga club five days before Oliver Glasner was installed at Crystal Palace in February 2024, and feels his side have a responsibility to represent Vallecas, the Madrid district they call home.
He said: “What our fans see every day when we play at home, we will try to keep that fire inside of us, that identity, everything that brought us here.”
Perez also sees similarities in the approach of both teams, who have reached this Saxony showpiece as a result of a full-team endeavour.
“We share some footballing traits,” said Perez, speaking on the evening before the final at the Red Bull Stadium.
“We could say that we have a specific way of understanding collective efforts and yes we have different structures too.
“But we used the same way of making effort collective and putting the team before the individual so when two collective teams face each other we know it’s going to be a very important game and a huge game for everybody.
“For me it’s very important that Crystal Palace are our rivals. When we started in this competition, many of us looked their way as a potential opponent and we are happy that they are our opponent tomorrow.”
Rayo Vallecano attacker Oscar Trejo, 38, added: “A group of friends will be lucky enough to go out there and play tomorrow in the stadium.
“For us it’s something magical; it’s something that we dreamed of.”
