FA Cup Final Preview: Can Crystal Palace slow Manchester City’s attacking stars?
After months of thrilling action, lots of highlight reel goals and a few upsets, the 2024-25 FA Cup wraps up on Saturday when Manchester City faces fellow Premier League club Crystal Palace in the final at London’s Wembley Stadium.
After months of thrilling action, lots of highlight reel goals and a few upsets, the 2024-25 FA Cup wraps up on Saturday when Manchester City faces fellow Premier League club Crystal Palace in the final at London’s Wembley Stadium.
It’s the first time in the FA Cup’s 154-year history that these two rivals will meet in the final.
For Man City, it’s a chance to win a trophy after a disappointing campaign on many fronts. For Palace, it’s an opportunity to win the competition for the first time in its history.
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Watch the FA Cup Final on Sportsnet
For the first time in FA Cup history, Premier League foes Manchester City and Crystal Palace meet in the final. Can Palace stop Man City’s hunt for a second championship in three years? Watch the match on Sportsnet or stream on Sportsnet+ on May 17 at 10:30 a.m. ET / 7:30 a.m. PT.
Here’s what you need to know about the 2025 FA Cup final.
The format
Saturday’s game is a straight knockout final, with no replays like some previous rounds of the FA Cup.
If the game is tied after 90 minutes of regulation, it will go to extra time and penalty kicks (if necessary) to determine the winner.
Setting the stage for Saturday
Manchester City has 65 points and currently sits fourth in the Premier League table with two games left in the campaign, holding a two-point edge over Chelsea and Aston Villa for one of the two final berths in next season’s UEFA Champions League.
Crystal Palace is 12th in the table with 49 points; four points more than it earned last season.
How both teams arrived at the final
Manchester City humiliated fourth-division outfit Salford City 8-0 and then brushed aside Leyton Orient (third division) and Plymouth Argyle (second division) before getting the better of fellow Premier League clubs Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
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It’s been smooth sailing for Crystal Palace into the final. The London-based club beat Stockport County (third division), Doncaster Rovers (fourth division) and Millwall (second division), before shutting out fellow Premier League outfits Fulham and Aston Villa by identical 3-0 scorelines in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
Man City vs. Palace in recent times
Manchester City took four out of a possible six points from its games against Crystal Palace during the 2024-25 Premier League season.
The teams played to a 2-2 draw at Selhurst Park on Dec. 7, before Man City earned a comprehensive 5-2 win at home on April 12.
The Blues are unbeaten in their last seven meetings with Palace in all competitions (four wins) since suffering a 2-1 loss in the Premier League in 2021. Man City have also won each of their last three FA Cup matches against Palace by a combined score of 18-4. City earned a 3-0 road win in the fourth round of the 2016-17 FA Cup in their previous encounter in the competition.
The key battle: Chris Richards vs. Ederson
There are lots of interesting one-on-one battles to follow during Saturday’s match. But one of the more overlooked ones might be Crystal Palace defender Chris Richards vs. Manchester City goalkeeper Ederson.
Richards offers Palace a dangerous threat in set-piece situations, having registered at least one shot in 11 of his last 14 starts. The centre back has one goal this season, and it just so happens to have come against Manchester City last month when he scored past Ederson via a header off a corner kick.
Manchester City enters this game as the favourite thanks to a glittering roster of attacking stars. One would expect them to dominate possession and dictate play, so Palace’s best scoring chances will likely come off set pieces. As such, Ederson will have to remain alert and stay sharp, especially with Richards lurking around the penalty area.
Players to watch
Erling Haaland has failed to score in any of his five appearances for Manchester City at Wembley Stadium, including three games in the FA Cup. If ever there was a time for the Norwegian striker to step up in a big way, this weekend is it.
English forward Eberechi Eze has been in fine form for Crystal Palace with five goals in his last four matches in all competitions. He has also been involved in four goals in his last four games in the FA Cup (three goals, one assist).
Burning questions
Kevin de Bruyne previously announced his plans to leave Manchester City at the end of the current Premier League campaign after 10 years. Will the Belgian star win one last trophy in one of his final appearances for the Blues?
Crystal Palace has earned clean sheets in four of their five FA Cup matches and have only conceded a single goal. But can they shut out a Manchester City side that has scored 17 times in their five games leading up to the final?
Numbers to remember
Manchester City has won the FA Cup on seven occasions, one short of tying Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham for the third most in the competition’s history, behind Arsenal (14) and Manchester United (13).
Crystal Palace is making its third appearance in the FA Cup final, having previously lost in 1990 and 2016, both to Manchester United.
Editor’s note
John Molinaro is one of the leading soccer journalists in Canada, having covered the game for over 25 years for several media outlets, including Sportsnet, CBC Sports and Sun Media. He is currently the editor-in-chief of TFC Republic, a website dedicated to in-depth coverage of Toronto FC and Canadian soccer.
