Crystal Palace 1–0 Manchester City Player Ratings: Eberechi Eze and Dean Henderson Win Crystal Palace Their First Ever Silverware as They Pip Manchester City in the FA Cup Final

Eberechi Eze was the history maker for Crystal Palace as the Eagles won their first ever title in the history of the club. They beat Manchester City 1-0 at Wembley Stadium in the FA Cup final in front of 50,000 loyal Crystal Palace fans who were all part of a historic event. Crystal Palace delivered the sucker punch early on through Eberechi Eze. The star winger volleyed his side into the lead after 15 minutes. Manchester City were in disbelief as Omar Marmoush missed his penalty after Dean Henderson made a fantastic save. The Eagles defended with their lives for 75 minutes, with Dean Henderson making fantastic saves to seal the result and win their first silverware.

Crystal Palace were designated as the home side in a clash they would not forget for ages. Their fans got to take a short trip across London to Wembley to cheer their heroes, who were a step short of immortality. Having never won a major silverware in their club history before, the job on hand was a tough finale against Manchester City. Oliver Glasner's side had a dream FA Cup run as they conceded only one goal en route final. The current squad, filled with stars and international players, backed themselves to do something their preceding teams have failed to do. They named their strongest lineup possible.

Pep Guardiola has only gone trophyless once in his career to this point. It was his first season with Manchester City. A rare slump this season threatened to do it twice. They were kicked out of all competitions except the FA Cup, where individual performances saved their grace. The Citizens used their experience, knowing any silverware would salvage their season and save face. With that in mind, the Spanish manager named a very attacking lineup without a natural defensive midfielder. It was also the last hurrah for City legend Kevin De Bruyne, who was leaving the club at the end of the season.

It was a very open game to call as both sides had their highs and lows this season. Besides, Manchester City were ten games unbeaten, and Crystal Palace were 5 games unbeaten coming into this game. The added motivation of winning a trophy made this a mouth-watering affair for both sides.

The stadium was buzzing with Crystal Palace fans making noise that would echo for ages. But Manchester City made a flying start as Kevin De Bruyne fired a lovely cross towards Erling Haaland. Dean Henderson heroically foiled the Norwegian's effort to maintain a state of rest early in the game. The seven-time FA Cup Champions had a couple of good chances from corners, but they failed to score. They dominated the ball and boxed Palace into their penalty area.

However, the absence of a natural defensive midfielder hurt them as the Eagles soared forward to take the lead. After being forced to defend for more than 15 minutes, they won the ball and ventured forward through Jean-Philippe Mateta's excellent hold-up play. He released Daniel Munoz down the right side to send a low cross into the middle for Eberechi Eze. Eze met it sweetly with a superb volley and deposited it beyond Stefan Ortega to give the underdogs the lead with their first attack. They nearly made it 2-0 just a couple of minutes later through a similar move, but Ismaila Sarr was denied by Stefan Ortega.

Manchester City got a ticket back into the game as Tyrick Mitchell felled Bernardo Silva in the box. Omar Marmoush stepped up this time instead of the usual suspect, Erling Haaland. The January signing fluffed his lines as he fired a poor penalty towards his left. Henderson guessed it right and parried the penalty away before claiming the rebound to make a fantastic double save. Jeremy Doku then curled an excellent effort that was repelled by Henderson smartly again before De Bruyne volleyed the rebound.

Crystal Palace defended brilliantly to see out the first half with a single-goal advantage. It was a slender lead, but you could believe the Eagles would give their everything to make sure that the scoreline would remain the same after the second period. Manchester City, on the other hand, were naive in the final third. The defence was also not protected properly and needed the manager to make some key tweaks at halftime.

There were no changes made at the break as City upped the ante in the second half. Savinho came out with a purpose as he made multiple good crosses into the box. The game turned into an attack vs defence affair as Crystal Palace opted to live dangerously by clinging onto their one-goal advantage.

The Eagles believed they doubled their advantage when Munoz bundled home from close range. But there was an offside in the buildup as the Colombian's celebrations were cut short. Manchester City were fast running out of time as they failed to crack Palace's defensive shell. They started committing silly mistakes as icons like De Bruyne and Haaland failed to inspire their side.

Both sides turned to their benches as fatigue started to set in. Crystal Palace fans were soaking in every single moment as the clock ticked towards the 90-minute mark. However, there were quite a lot of nervous faces too, as City could never be ruled off till the final whistle. The determined Eagles made sure they held onto that lead to make sure they lift the title this time. The stadium erupted in joy as the final whistle went to kick-start the party in South London.

Crystal Palace created history by winning the FA Cup for the first time in their history. They got lucky on the third time of asking after losing two previous finals to Manchester United. It is also their first major silverware in 119 years of existence. Oliver Glasner and his entire squad, especially Eberechi Eze, will go down in the history books of the club. They return to their league duties against Wolves next up, but don't expect them to turn up with full spirits that game after partying hard.

Manchester City's dismal season took a turn for the worse as they remain trophyless this season. Kevin De Bruyne's final season didn't go as planned at all, as he failed to make an impact in the FA Cup final. Pep Guardiola has gone trophyless in a season just for the second time in his career. The Citizens' season could still go south if they fail to wrap up Champions League qualification. They must win their next two games against Bournemouth and Fulham.

Here are the Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Player Ratings.

Crystal Palace Player Ratings vs Manchester City

GK - Dean Henderson-9/10

Saved Omar Marmoush's penalty and made an even better save on the rebound. Stood his ground on setpieces well. Had a shaky handball moment on the edge of the penalty box but came out unscathed.

CB - Chris Richards-8/10

Played as the widest centre-back on the right and had to be on top of his game against the tricky Jeremy Doku. Kept his eye on the ball and didn't commit himself rashly. Made a lot of crucial interventions in the second half.

CB - Maxence Lacroix-7/10

Tasked with tracking and marking Haaland, he did an excellent job. Was in the firing line for City's shots from outside the box.

CB - Marc Guehi-6.5/10

Played as the leader of defence and helped his side settle into the game. Used his left foot to send his side away on some counters. Had to be replaced because of an injury at the hour mark.

RM - Daniel Munoz-7.5/10

Was available in defence for Chris Richards against Doku. But it was in the attack that he shone the brightest as he delivered deadly crosses after flying forward multiple times.

CM - Adam Wharton-6.5/10

Waited patiently on the edge of his box to win the ball back. His passing range and dribbling expertise were on display as he helped his side progress with the ball.

CM - Daichi Kamada-6.5/10

Played the role of a facilitator as he connected attack and defence. Played a key role in their first goal by exchanging passes with Mateta. Was ever present on both ends of the pitch.

LM-Tyrick Mitchell-6/10

Committed a silly mistake as he slid down on Bernardo Silva, who was going nowhere. Breathed a sigh of relief as his keeper bailed him out. Was very positive in his tackles later on.

RF - Ismaila Sarr-6.5/10

Had a fabulous chance to make it 2-0 just after they scored, but fired it straight at Ortega. Was a menace on the breaks every time he got the chance.

LF - Eberechi Eze-8/10

The English international was flowing as he added another big game performance to his resume. Scored a sumptuous volley to open the scoring. He dropped back and used his agility to get out of jail and set his side up.

ST - Jean-Philippe Mateta-7/10

Pinned down the opposition centre-backs and played like a battering ram whenever his side were on the break. Despite having fewer chances for himself, he was focused on creating spaces for his teammates.

SUB - Jefferson Lerma-6/10

SUB - Eddie Nketiah-6/10

SUB - Will Hughes-6/10

Manager - Oliver Glasner-8/10

His side stuck to their game plan by setting up a low block. The manager got his dream of being clinical on the counter true when Eze gave his side the lead. They needed a massive defensive performance in the second half.

Manchester City Player Ratings vs Crystal Palace

GK - Stefan Ortega-6/10

Was nowhere near Eze's finish for the first goal. Made amends with a great save moments later to keep it at 1-0.

RB - Manuel Akanji-5.5/10

Lost track of Eze for the first goal as he let the Englishman get goalside. Advanced forward multiple times in search of an equaliser, but didn't have the required quality.

CB - Ruben Dias-6/10

Mateta was too comfortably backing into him before spinning him for fun. Had an iffy moment defensively but went unpunished.

CB - Josko Gvardiol-6/10

Had a fantastic leap to meet a corner that was well saved by Henderson. Mateta gave him a hard time as he took turns to pin the defenders down.

LB - Nico O'Reilly-6/10

The youngster was rewarded a start thanks to his previous heroics in the cup. He inverted into midfield to aid them in control. Won plenty of duels as he swept up some attacks. However, he wasn't able to make an impact offensively.

CM - Bernardo Silva-6.5/10

Won a penalty for his side after dancing into the box. Defensively, failed to live up to the expectation as City often struggled to contain Palace on the breaks.

CM - Kevin De Bruyne-6.5/10

The midfield maverick ran the show as he demanded the ball and rained the Palace box with his crosses. Blasted a glorious chance on the rebound.

RW - Savinho-6.5/10

He was dull in the first half and improved his game tenfold in the second period. He needed to put more direction on his crosses.

CAM - Omar Marmoush-5/10

Haaland gave up his penalty, but Marmoush missed a golden chance to equalise for his side. Failed to create an impact otherwise as well.

LW - Jeremy Doku-7/10

Jinxed his way past defenders several times and caused trouble. His goal-bound shot was excellently saved by Henderson in the first half.

ST - Erling Haaland-6/10

Stretched himself brilliantly to meet a De Bruyne cross but was denied by a great save. Gave up the penalty to Omar Marmoush and could only hit the rebound straight at Henderson. He was not involved much in the game again as he looks to gain some match rhythm.

SUB - Claudio Echeverri-6/10

SUB - Phil Foden-6/10

SUB - Ilkay Gundogan-6/10

Manager - Pep Guardiola-4/10

Named an ultra-attacking lineup without a defensive midfielder. It cost him dearly, as there was control missing at times. Even offensively, the forwards failed to gel together. Just a second trophyless season in his entire career, and both of them have come at his current club.

Sportsdunia's Player of the Match: Dean Henderson