After defeats to Manchester United in the 1990 and 2016 finals, it was third time lucky for Crystal Palace as they won the first major trophy in their history with a shock 1-0 win over Manchester City at Wembley. Eberechi Eze scored the only goal in the 16th minute, smartly guiding home after a superb run and cross from Daniel Munoz.
The game wasn’t without controversy, with Dean Henderson saving a debatable penalty after Tyreek Mitchell had brought Bernardo Silva down in the 33rd minute. Erling Haaland seemed certain to take it, but instead it was Omar Marmoush who had his shot thrillingly saved.
Whether Henderson should even have been on the pitch was another matter. A long ball directed at Haaland in the 24th minute confused the Palace goalkeeper, and he palmed the ball towards the corner flag just as the striker was poised to clip it past him. Henderson’s palm was clearly outside the box, but VAR adjudged that Haaland was going away from goal, and it wasn’t a clear denial of a goal-scoring opportunity. On the BBC, Wayne Rooney – who once played for City’s bitter rivals, Manchester United – said it was a clear red card.
To rub salt into City’s wounds, Henderson made stunning saves off Jeremy Doku and Mateo Kovacic. Munoz thought he had scored a second after a penalty-box melee in the second half, but Ismaila Sarr was offside when the ball struck him.
The defeat completed a second trophy-less season for Pep Guardiola at City, after his inaugural one in 2016-17. City aren’t yet guaranteed a place in next season’s Champions League either. They currently sit in sixth place, with a game in hand (against Bournemouth) over some of the clubs above them.
As for Palace, the Europa League awaits next season, as does the Community Shield against Liverpool, the league champions, in August.