Crystal Palace 3-0 Aston Villa: 4 talking points as Eagles hunt first major trophy & Villa drought continues | OneFootball

Crystal Palace swept Aston Villa aside to win Saturday evening’s FA Cup semi-final and book their place in next month’s final, as they hunt a first ever major trophy.

Eberechi Eze broke the deadlock with a fine first half goal, before Jean-Philippe Mateta, who also had a goal softly disallowed during the contest, squandered the opportunity to double that advantage from the penalty spot soon after the break.

But Palace didn’t allow that moment to let them falter. Ismaila Sarr went on to get a second quickly after the penalty miss, before grabbing his second and Palace’s third in stoppage time.

How the game unfolded

With so much at stake for both of these clubs, the early stages of the game were understandably cagey. A yellow card for either side and an ambitious shot from distance from Villa midfielder Boubacar Kamara that flew way over the bar was all that really characterised the opening quarter.

But things burst into more life when Villa went close through Morgan Rogers around 25 minutes in. The Lucas Digne cross low from the left bypassed a few in the box before it reached Rogers, whose effort bounced into the turf and wide of the post.

Palace quickly responded by putting the ball in the net through Mateta. The in-form striker chased down a ball forward, appeared to outmuscle Ezri Konsa and calmly finish, one-on-one, beyond Emiliano Martinez. Referee Anthony Taylor whistled for a foul. It looked harsh.

But the Eagles did go in front not long afterwards. Pau Torres’ clearance was closed down and Ismaila Sarr steered a cutback to the edge of the box, where Eze was on hand to lash in a first-time finish.

At the other end, Torres misguided a header as he tried to make amends, before Konsa had a similar effort saved from Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson.

Chances for both teams kept coming either side of the interval, Konsa just unable to reach John McGinn’s cross, Tyrick Mitchell slipping at the wrong moment preparing to shoot, Eze firing over, McGinn forcing a save from Henderson, who then parried a powerful effort from Digne behind.

Then came Palace’s best chance to extend the lead as Kamara brought down Eze in the penalty area. Taylor pointed to the spot and Mateta stepped to put a more comfortable buffer in the score-line. But in his efforts to evade the long reach of Martinez, the Frenchman aimed his kick a little too far to the right, clipping the outside of the post as it missed the target.

Fortunately, from a Palace perspective, it wasn’t the catalyst to get Villa back into the game. Instead, it was only five minutes after the missed penalty that the Eagles got their second goal. Like the first, it was another quick transition as Adam Wharton pressed to cut off a Villa pass, the ball making its way to Sarr, who unleashed a low strike from distance that nestled in the bottom corner.

Substitute Leon Bailey looked to try and make things happen for Villa without truly testing Palace, who defended magnificently. As much as he was an attacking outlet, Mateta was back in his own penalty area for a key tackle, while Mitchell cut out a ball that promised to give Ollie Watkins a tap-in.

Into stoppage-time, Sarr made absolutely certain of the result. More high pressing stopped Villa from playing out and presented the chance to Sarr after Eddie Nketiah had caught Youri Tielemans in possession. High on confidence, Sarr made no mistake, one-on-one.

Check out the player ratings from Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa here.

First FA Cup finalist confirmed

Crystal Palace are into the FA Cup final / Crystal Pix/MB Media/GettyImages

Crystal Palace will return to Wembley Stadium on Saturday 17 May for the 2025 FA Cup final. Their opponent will be confirmed on Sunday when Manchester City and Nottingham Forest contest the second semi-final.

The Eagles have never won a major trophy and are hoping to change that. Given their performance here, they won’t be scare of either club they might face.

It will be only a 13th ever trip to Wembley and is their first final since 2016, when Jesse Lingard score Manchester United’s winner in extra-time. Palace’s only other FA Cup final appearance was also against Manchester United, coming back in 1990, when Ian Wright and co. forced a replay but ultimately succumbed to defeat as Sir Alex Ferguson claimed a first trophy in English football.

Eze does it

Given his form at this stage of the season, Eberechi Eze’s performance will only fuel transfer speculation heading into the summer. The 26-year-old makes thing happen and has been linked with Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United in recent weeks.

He scored a fine goal of the highest quality and intelligence against Arsenal in midweek and showcased exceptional ability to influence a game on a huge stage again in this one.

Palace tactics prevail

Oliver Glasner got things spot on / Catherine Ivill - AMA/GettyImages

On top of Eze, Ismaila Sarr and Jean-Philippe Mateta each deserve enormous, as do everyone dressed in red and blue stripes. The three forwards were close to unplayable, but it was the work they and others were willing to do off the ball that helped define the tie.

All three Palace goals were the product of pressing and forcing Villa into losing the ball in their own half. The first was from a closed down clearance, while the second and third came by anticipating Villa’s passing pattern and putting immediate pressure on the receiving player – Youri Tielemans on both occasions – to win the ball in dangerous attacking positions.

Every Palace player put in a huge defensive shift, rendering Villa’s talented forwards largely useless. Ollie Watkins was a passenger, Marco Asensio couldn’t pull strings and there was just no way through.

Aston Villa’s trophy hunt goes on

Defeat means Aston Villa will now go into a 30th year without a major trophy.

It was March 1996 when Brian Little’s Villa triumphed over Leeds United at the old Wembley in the League Cup final. Savo Milosevic, Ian Taylor and Dwight Yorke found the net that day.

Villa have been close to breaking that drought a few times since, losing the FA Cup final in 2000 and 2015, as well as the being League Cup runners-up in 2010 and 2020. They have lifted a trophy at Wembley, winning the Championship play-off final in 2019, but getting over the line in a major competition continues to prove elusive.

Unai Emery’s side don’t have time to sit and lick their wounds. Seventh in the Premier League, but only three points off Chelsea in fifth, Champions League qualification is very much within reach with a strong end to the campaign.

Having had a taste of Europe’s top level this season, giving Paris Saint-Germain a genuine run for their money in the quarter-finals, the club and fans will be keen for it not to be a one-off. From a financial perspective, there is a huge incentive as well. Remaining games against Fulham, Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United will define the season.