In a historic achievement, Crystal Palace secured their first-ever trophy in 119 years by defeating the heavily favored Manchester City 1-0 in the FA Cup final held today.

Eberechi Eze’s goal in the first half proved decisive, marking a moment that will be cherished by the south London supporters, who will forever remember May 17, 2025.

Despite having little possession early in the match, Palace took the lead shortly after the 15-minute mark. A well-executed goal-kick routine allowed Jean-Philippe Mateta to assist Daichi Kamada, who then found Daniel Munoz making a run down the right flank. Munoz’s cutback set up Eze for a smooth finish.

There was a lengthy VAR review regarding a potential red card for Dean Henderson after he handled the ball outside his box while challenging Erling Haaland. However, it was determined that Haaland was moving away from the goal and had defenders nearby, leading to the conclusion that there was no clear scoring opportunity denied, allowing the match to continue with both teams at 11-v-11.

Not long after, Palace gave away a penalty when Tyrick Mitchell took down Bernardo Silva with a sliding tackle, even though replays showed he might have touched the ball first. Omar Marmoush took the shot but was denied by Henderson, who made an incredible low save to his right. After the break, Palace faced more pressure but then quickly went down the field and scored again. City struggled to handle a long throw-in from Chris Richards, and Munoz’s shot deflected off Ismaila Sarr and slipped past goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, leading to a wild celebration from the fans behind the goal. Unfortunately, Sarr was ruled offside when the initial shot hit him, so the goal was disallowed.

Pep Guardiola’s team gave it their all against the Eagles in search of a goal to level the score. Debutant Claudio Echeverri faced off against Henderson in a battle of skill before the match entered ten minutes of extra time. However, Palace managed to hold on through an intense stoppage time to secure the club’s first major trophy.

Crystal Palace Celebrating after their 1-0 victory vs Manchester City in the fa cup final played 17 May 2025