Inside Crystal Palace FA Cup win and Jean-Philippe Mateta domino that changed everything

Just look around this Crystal Palace team. What makes this historic, momentous FA Cup triumph so unique and special is that Oliver Glasner's side are not just good at football but they also represent their people impeccably.

Eagles captain Marc Guehi came through the ranks at Cray Wanderers based in nearby Chislehurst, while Greenwich-born match-winner Eberechi Eze sharpened his skills and earned respect on the concrete of south London's football cages.

They are local boys but equally, no other Premier League club embodies diversity - a key principle in Croydon and the streets that surround Selhurst Park - like Palace because their players come from almost every corner of the globe.

Eze's first-half winner was engineered in the shadows of the Colombian Andes where greyhound-like wing-back Daniel Munoz used to run like the wind on his way home from school. It's crazy to think the 28-year-old only joined the Eagles last year, for just £6.8million, because he's already etched his name into club folklore.

There is a reason no player in the top-flight has made more sprints than Munoz (850) this season and his remarkable speed and delivery for Eze's opener now belongs to the FA Cup history books.

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Japanese maestro Daichi Kamada's summer arrival from Lazio divided the fanbase earlier in the season following a string of disciplinary issues but Glasner's faith and the gritty midfielder's resilience has shone through on his commendable road to redemption.

This Palace victory was also a nod to the importance of being resolute and determined because several of Glasner's stars could have thrown in the towel as they battled through notable mental hurdles.

None more so than the irresistible Dean Henderson, he could have been sent off but in the end nobody can deny he was the hero following an all-time great FA Cup final goalkeeping display.

He was sold by boyhood club Manchester United and wasn't even first-choice on arrival at Palace but he displaced Sam Johnstone, muscled his way back into the England fold and now he's an Eagles icon.

In the past year, he has lost beloved father Dougie and former Sheffield United team-mate George Baldock but if they were watching on from above - they could not be more proud of him because Henderson played out of his skin.

Then there's Eze, who less than 10 years ago was lying in a dormitory bed in Sunderland wondering if he would ever make it. He'd been released by Millwall, Fulham and Arsenal and was then snubbed following trials with the Black Cats and Reading before QPR took a chance on him and Rangers never looked back - nor did England international Eze, who has made a habit of netting at Wembley.

Jean-Philippe Mateta almost saw his Palace loan terminated early in January 2022 and he nearly joined Saint-Etienne instead while Marseille basically deemed Ismaila Sarr surplus to requirements at the end of the 2023-24 season after scoring just three Ligue 1 goals last term.

Even American defender Chris Richards, who stood tall throughout Man City's onslaught, was left with no choice but to leave German giants Bayern Munich to make a success of his career in Europe - he has now found a sense of belonging and a place to call home.

There are also intriguing parallels between Palace's FA Cup success and Glasner's Europa League exploits with Eintracht Frankfurt in 2022. In Germany, his team were winless from their opening seven games but one goal changed everything - just as it did for the Eagles in October when Mateta's winner saw them finally chalk up their first Premier League win of the season over Tottenham.

Glasner is now immortal; it was somewhat fitting that he was the man to win the club's first major trophy in 164 years because he typifies the value of belief and never giving up. The Austrian has proven to be the glue that brought it all together. He will never have to buy a pint south of the river again.

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