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- Oliver Glasner鈥檚 side took the lead in the semifinal through Eze鈥檚 long-range blast
- 鈥淎ll the credit to the players. They had to work so hard. They had to overcome a few difficult moments,鈥� Glasner said
LONDON: Crystal Palace reached the FA Cup final for the first time in nine years as Ismaila Sarr鈥檚 double and a rocket from Eberechi Eze sealed a 3-0 win against Aston Villa at Wembley on Saturday.
Oliver Glasner鈥檚 side took the lead in the semifinal through Eze鈥檚 long-range blast before Sarr netted twice in the second half.
In the final on May 17, Palace will face Nottingham Forest or Manchester City, who meet in the second semifinal on Sunday.
The Eagles have never won the FA Cup, losing their two final appearances against Manchester United in 2016 and 1990.
鈥淎ll the credit to the players. They had to work so hard. They had to overcome a few difficult moments,鈥� Glasner said.
鈥淲e got more control and it was an unbelievable performance. The players stuck to the plan and we never lost our heads.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know at the moment how I feel 鈥� a bit exhausted. The players have four days off now. They should enjoy the moment.鈥�
Villa, who last won the FA Cup in 1957, were hoping to make the final for the first time since 2015.
But Unai Emery鈥檚 team produced a dismal display and will have to settle for fighting to qualify for the Champions League via a top five finish in the Premier League.
鈥淲hen they scored the first goal it was more difficult for us and we only reacted after 2-0 and then we created more chances to score and we didn鈥檛 do. In transition they are very good, and they deserve to win,鈥� Emery said.
鈥淪orry to our supporters because they were motivated. We have to accept it. We have to be quick to react because in the league we have the most important objective.鈥�
Jean-Philippe Mateta had the ball in the back of the net just before the half-hour mark, but it was chalked off after a VAR check confirmed the Palace striker had fouled Ezri Konsa in the build-up.
There was no such doubt about Eze鈥檚 opener, however, after Sarr got in the way of Pau Torres鈥� pass, then collected the resulting ricochet to the right of the Villa area.
Sarr found Eze and the midfielder curled a superb strike beyond the reach of Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.
Torres looked for an instant reply when he nodded just over the crossbar.
Konsa came closer, forcing Dean Henderson into a low save with a header of his own from a corner.
Villa piled on more pressure after the restart when Henderson made another fine save to deny John McGinn鈥檚 sharp volley, then Lucas Digne fired narrowly wide through a crowd of players.
Palace were awarded a 53rd-minute penalty after Eze was tugged down by Boubacar Kamara and Mateta stepped up to the spot after a VAR check, but his shot clipped the post and went wide.
Just as Villa started to gain momentum, Adam Wharton intercepted a pass and, after a quick touch from Mateta, Sarr fired into the bottom corner.
Henderson repelled a blast from Villa substitute Leon Bailey, moments after Mateta slid in to deny Ross Barkley.
Sarr nodded Eze鈥檚 cross off target, while Matty Cash鈥檚 attempt to claw a late goal back for Villa sailed wide.
Sarr put the seal on Palace鈥檚 impressive performance in stoppage-time, outpacing Konsa before slotting home to send the Eagles into the final.