Crystal Palace reach their 3rd FA Cup final: Key stats
What's the story
Crystal Palace have booked a place in the 2024/25 FA Cup final after thrashing Aston Villa 3-0 at the Wembley Stadium.
The game witnessed Eberechi Eze scoring a stunning opening goal, bending home a beautiful strike from 22 yards after a turnover and pass from Ismalia Sarr.
Sarr then proved to be crucial, scoring two second-half goals.
Despite Villa's efforts to put pressure, Dean Henderson's outstanding performance kept them at bay.
With this win, Palace have reached their 3rd FA Cup final.
Match highlights
Sarr's brilliance secures Palace's victory
After Eze's first goal, the match took a decisive turn when Sarr scored a brace for Palace.
He thumped home a long-range strike seven minutes after Jean-Philippe Mateta's missed penalty and sealed the victory in injury time on a counterattack.
With an assist and two goals, Sarr made the difference for the Eagles with a resounding performance.
Team changes
Aston Villa's struggle continues
Aston Villa made three changes to their lineup for this match. Jacob Ramsey, Amadou Onana, and Marcus Rashford were replaced by John McGinn, Ollie Watkins, and Marco Asensio.
Despite the changes and a strong performance from Henderson in goal for Palace, Villa struggled to make an impact in the final third.
This defeat extends their wait to lift the FA Cup as it's been 68 years since they last did.
Manager's statement
Unai Emery apologizes to supporters
After the match, Aston Villa manager Unai Emery expressed his disappointment while apologizing to the supporters.
He stressed that their priority is the Premier League and they will concentrate on consistency in that tournament.
"I'm sorry to the supporters but I dominate my frustration," he said.
Despite this setback, Villa still has four games left in their top-flight campaign as they aim for a top-five finish and secure Champions League football next season.
Opta stats
Massive records made by Palace
Palace have enjoyed their joint-biggest ever win at Wembley in all competitions, alongside a 4-1 win over Everton in the 1991 Full Members' Cup final.
As mentioned, Palace have reached the FA Cup final for the third time, after 1990 and 2016.
Palace are the first Premier League side to have two players score from outside the box in the same match at Wembley in all competitions since Tottenham vs Bournemouth in the Premier League in December 2018.
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Unwanted records for Villa
As per Opta, Palace beat Villa in three of their 4 meetings across competitions this season (D1). Meanwhile, Villa have lost 7 of their last 9 matches at Wembley in all competitions (W2). Villa have failed to beat Palace in 5 successive matches in all competitions, conceding 16 goals.
Information
A look at the match stats
Villa had 5 shots on target from 16 attempts with Palace managing 4 shots on target from 9 attempts. Villa had 71% ball possession and an 86% pass accuracy.