It was a day that will live forever in the hearts of everyone connected to Crystal Palace; history made, legends created. The south London club were on a mission to avenge previous Wembley pain, specifically the FA Cup final defeats by Manchester United from 1990 and 2016; to win a first major trophy. They put their supporters through the wringer because it is written that they must suffer. But when the final whistle blew, the joy was boundless. Who knows when it will feel real?
The goalscorer was Eberechi Eze, Palace’s sorcerer-in-chief, and it came in the 16th minute from an assist by Daniel Muñoz, who was irrepressible up and down the right. But the real hero was surely Dean Henderson, who saved a penalty just after the half-hour from the Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush and it was hardly the goalkeeper’s only vital intervention.
Should Henderson have been on the field to distinguish himself? The former Manchester United player had handled outside his area on 24 minutes to thwart Erling Haaland and if there was considerable doubt over his continued involvement, he was given the benefit of it. When it was all over, he appeared to have a forthright exchange of views with Pep Guardiola on the pitch; the passions bubbled throughout.
Palace defended with everything they had, one of the hallmarks of Oliver Glasner’s stunning year or so at the helm and, in the final analysis, City did not do enough. Their patterns were formulaic and when opportunity knocked, they either seized up or found Henderson in the way.
There was agony for the Palace supporters when the board went up to show 10 additional minutes. They had seen Nico O’Reilly hesitate for City at the crucial moment towards the end of regulation time after a Kevin De Bruyne pass. And Henderson saved smartly from the City substitute Claudio Echeverri, who had come on for his debut.
In stoppage time, De Bruyne shot wide with the outside of a boot and Henderson once again denied Echeverri, setting the scene for one of the images of the season – or any other from a Palace point of view; virtually every player in red and blue slumped to the turf, utterly overcome.
For City, it set the seal on a deeply underwhelming season, the first time since 2016-17 – Guardiola’s first in charge – that they had finished without silverware. There was no fairytale sendoff for De Bruyne before his departure in the summer. Guardiola and his players must now pick themselves up to ensure a top-five Premier League finish and a return to the Champions League.
As Palace’s jubilant players celebrated with the trophy, it was easy to overlook the fact that the glory carried the bonus of Europa League qualification; the club have never previously played in a major European competition.
What must have flashed through the mind of the chairman, Steve Parish? Possibly how his club had gone to the brink in financial terms, twice surviving administration. And definitely gratitude to Glasner, who has brought cohesion and identity. Apart from the sticky spell in the first eight league games of the season, the manager has regularly hit the high notes.
Glasner had said beforehand that victory would mean more for Palace and it was hard to disagree. It was only Palace’s third major final; it was City’s third in three seasons in the FA Cup alone.
Palace had sunk into a 5-4-1 shape at the outset, ceding possession, and there were a couple of nervous moments for them. Henderson made his first save to keep out a hooked Haaland volley. But when Palace broke upfield for the first time, they did so into acres of space and how they made the punch count. Jean-Philippe Mateta’s hold-up work was sound and Muñoz ran with characteristic willingness. Eze timed his move, getting in front of Manuel Akanji and the volley from Muñoz’s cross was executed with exemplary technique.
There was another Palace surge up the right through Muñoz, another cross and a flick by Ismaïla Sarr that forced Stefan Ortega into a smart save before the touchpaper was lit.
City felt that Henderson had to be sent off for denying Haaland a clear goalscoring opportunity. The centre-forward ran for the ball towards the edge of the Palace box and saw Henderson come out and paw it away from him, looking suspiciously outside his area as he did so. The freeze-frame pictures would confirm that Henderson did handle outside the box. Without the intervention, it was difficult to argue that something promising for Haaland would not have happened.
City’s grievances deepened when Henderson made the penalty save shortly after. Bernardo Silva essentially bought the decision; he was already going down when Tyrick Mitchell slid in, anticipating the contact towards the byline. It was an unwise move from Mitchell, inviting the worst.
Henderson plunged to his right to repel Marmoush’s kick, then keep out Haaland’s rebound and there were further heroics from him before the interval when he pushed Jérémy Doku’s curling shot up and out. On the second phase of the move, De Bruyne lashed high when well placed; a big miss.
Guardiola’s selection had an all-or-nothing feel; no recognised holding midfielder. His team pushed at the start of the second half, Palace resisting, never more so than when Doku played in Silva and he was denied by a body-on-the-line block by Daichi Kamada. Previously, Doku had bent a shot just off target.
City caught a break when Muñoz had a goal disallowed for an offside against Sarr, who had been in front of Ortega, and the tensions pounded, spilling over into an argument between the benches. It was reported that Guardiola had clashed with the Palace first-team coach, Paddy McCarthy, in the tunnel at half-time. It was impossible for the Palace supporters to suppress their anxiety. It only added to the impossible sweetness when it was over.
