FA Cup: Crystal Palace stun Man City to win first major trophy

Crystal Palace won the first major trophy in the club’s history with a victory over Manchester City in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

Eberechi Eze was Palace’s hero, capping off a superb counter-attack by sweeping home Daniel Muñoz’s cross after 16 minutes.

City endured a day of total frustration, failing to win a trophy in a season for the first time since Pep Guardiola’s debut campaign in 2016–17.

They were furious when Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson was not shown a red card after handling the ball outside his area under pressure from Erling Haaland. The video assistant referee (VAR) judged that Haaland was moving away from goal and was therefore not denied a clear scoring opportunity.

Henderson then emerged as Palace’s hero, saving Omar Marmoush’s penalty in the 36th minute after Tyrick Mitchell fouled Bernardo Silva. Haaland had stepped aside from penalty duties after missing three of his last seven attempts.

City dominated possession, but Oliver Glasner’s side defended brilliantly. Henderson was outstanding, denying Haaland, Joško Gvardiol, and Jérémy Doku in the first half, and Claudio Echeverri after the break.

The final whistle sparked scenes of ecstasy among Palace fans as their long wait for silverware finally came to an end.