Devenny looking forward to promise of new season
Like so many of us, Justin Devenny will never forget the 2024/25 season – but the 21-year-old is focused not on now looking back on a historic campaign, but building upon it.
In the last two years, the midfielder traded the Scottish second tier for England’s top league; won an Academy trophy; became Under-21s captain; made his Premier League and senior international debut in the same month; signed a new contract until 2027; and, last but certainly by no means least, won the FA Cup with Crystal Palace, our first-ever major trophy, at Wembley.
Quite the chapter, then – but the midfielder is not prepared to rest on his laurels, and has made a bright start to 2025/26 with some lively displays in pre-season, playing the entirety of two matches against Mainz 05 and FC Augsburg in Austria last week.
Reflecting on his journey so far, Devenny told Palace TV: “I mean it was all I could ask for, to be honest – I loved every minute of it last season and, as good as it was, for me, now, it's done.
“It's in the past and now, it's looking forward to the future and seeing what this season brings – and hopefully it'll be more of the same.”
The standards are so high throughout the group
—Justin Devenny
In what proved to be a breakout season for both club and country, Devenny featured 28 times for Palace – and five times for Northern Ireland – last season, with five of his appearances for the Eagles being starts.
“I always try and help everyone around me, whether that's the youngest player on the pitch or the oldest player on the pitch,” Devenny said.
“I feel like everyone in the group is good at that. They want to help each other, and I think that's what probably helps us most as a team: just helping each other on the pitch, communicating, it goes a long way.
“The Manager [Oliver Glasner] has made it pretty clear to all the players what he demands. The standards are so high throughout the group, and it's for me to then implement them whenever I get the chance, whenever I'm playing and training.
“I might not be playing every game but that doesn't matter – it's what I'm doing behind the scenes, helping out the team in other ways which kind of might go unnoticed. But yeah, for me, it's all about trying to get in on that pitch as much as possible.”
With a return to Wembley to face Liverpool in the FA Community Shield up next, Devenny reflected on the week in Austria as a whole: “That’s the main thing at this time of the year: getting minutes in the legs. I think most boys played 60 and then 90, all in the space of a week.
“Getting the minutes is important, especially with a big game coming up next weekend. But it's good as well to get the group together and get away.
"It's good for team bonding, bringing that togetherness as a squad, and I think it's been a successful trip in those terms.”