Crystal Palace Shock Man City to Win First FA Cup in Their History

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Palace claimed FA Cup glory after beating Man City at Wembley. BeSoccer

The third time’s a charm for Crystal Palace. After losing in the finals in 1990 and 2016, both times against Manchester United, the greatest day in the history of the Eagles happened on May 17th, 2025 when they won the FA Cup against the favorite Manchester City, 1:0.

One hundred and nineteen years without the trophy ended in London yesterday in front of the packed Wembley stadium with over 80,000 fans witnessing the iconic moment.

The match was played within the regular time with many missed chances for Man City, only to end up scoring nil. The fans, broadcasters, and all soccer fanatics were on fire throughout the match, betting on the absolute favorite on Stake.com to at least go into the extra time, or maybe even penalties, but as the time ticked away high hopes diminished. In the end, everyone on the field was crying for different reasons.

Match Overview:

Final Score: Crystal Palace 1-0 Manchester City
Goal: Eberechi Eze (16')
Venue: Wembley Stadium, London
Attendance: 84,163
Referee: Stuart Attwell
Man of the Match: Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace)

The match began with the Citizens testing Palace, pushing the game forward towards their goalkeeper Henderson. The Eagles played defensively, barely even going out of their half of the field. It didn’t take long for Haaland to meet a cross from the right on the volley, with Henderson quickly blocking the attempt.

For the next 10 minutes, Man City was keeping the pressure on the Eagles' defense line, fiercely attacking at every chance. Palace was holding the line, kicking long shots, while gathering in front of the penalty box. Akanji had a chance after the corner, but his head kick flashed just above the top of the goal bar.

Sixteen minutes after the match began, Man City was surprised by the counterattack from Palace, with Munoz sprinting down the right wing, seeing the late run by Eze who scored with a volley into the corner of the goal. The Eagles got into the lead of 1:0.

Eberechi Eze is in the form of his life, scoring every time in the last five matches. Eze is the first player to net in five Crystal Palace games in a row since Darren Ambrose in 2009.

After scoring the first goal in the match, Oliver Glasner’s team regained confidence and started attacking more often, not leaving much space for Pep’s superstars. With no other solution, Man City began attacking viciously and earned a penalty in minute 34 after Mitchell’s fault over Silva. For a free kick, Man City picked Omar Marmoush who took the ball from Haaland and kicked in the right corner of the goal. Henderson brilliant defense with his right hand, and saves his team.

Halftime came around with a couple more tries from the City, but Henderson was again the impenetrable defense. Except for Guehi leaving the field after an injury that didn’t seem to bother him immediately but later caused issues, nothing much happened until the City failed to deal with a long throw from the right. After a wimpy save from Ortega, Munoz quickly saw a chance for a rebound, but VAR determined that he was offside. And the goal did not stand.

Still, Palace was attacking more, while still holding a strong defensive line. Guardiola’s team was trying to use the void created by Guehi but Henderson and the rest of the team were not having any of that superstar anxiety, defending every attempt, with Man City having problems even coming close to the goal. The cracks in the team began to show, and The Citizens started looking lost from disbelief.

There was a ten minute makeup time, and Crystal Palace was counting the seconds to their big triumph. The match ended and the fans at Wembley went crazy loud, as well as broadcasters pitching in their mics, spectators, and everyone else who loves betting on soccer, this was a perfect example of the unpredictability of the sport. The total underdog that didn’t see the finals for a decade, and never won the FA Cup, won the trophy.

After an amazing run in the FA, Crystal Palace has finally done it, they won the cup! It also sees Palace qualify for a major European competition for the very first time the UEFA Europa League and leaves The Cityzens failing to win any silverware since Guardiola’s maiden campaign.

When the dust settles, the 2025 FA Cup Final will be remembered as a classic underdog triumph. This victory marked Crystal Palace's first major trophy in their 164-year history, a tremendous achievement for the club. The celebrations in the south of London are going to last for days, that is for sure. It seems that Glasner was quietly working on finding a perfect blend of aggressiveness and calm defense, that can put the team in balance and good rhythm where they can keep the game under control.

Even with less of a great start, when Manchester City had possession of the ball the majority of the time, the Eagles stuck to the plan that their coach demanded. It was as if Palace expected Man City to be so fierce in the beginning, while they were building the game and gaining the momentum. The perfect timing finally came, and they didn’t miss a beat.