Following the FA Cup final, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola declined to shake hands with Crystal Palace goalie Dean Henderson.
After losing their previous two trips to Wembley for cup finals in 1990 and 2016, Crystal Palace defeated Man City to win their first-ever major trophy. Early in the first half, Eberechi Eze completed a brilliant counterattack play for the Eagles, which was sufficient to demonstrate the difference.
Despite controlling the ball for the entirety of the game, City was unable to overcome the one-goal deficit, and the defeat meant that the team would end the season without a trophy for the first time in nearly ten years. Henderson in the Palace goal, however, deserves a lot of the credit for City’s lack of a goal.
Henderson’s outstanding performance included stopping Omar Marmoush’s penalty kick in the first half. Although it is reasonable to argue that the goalie was fortunate to be on the field at all, Henderson never appeared to be defeated and was a source of inspiration for his team.
“No Negative Emotions”
Guardiola and Henderson consider a possible red card.
Henderson unintentionally handled the ball just outside of his area while shutting down Erling Haaland in the first half. Henderson undoubtedly squandered a chance to score and should have been sent off even though the ball was heading away from the goal and it appeared to be a natural coming together.
Guardiola’s frustration with Henderson is therefore justified, especially considering Manchester City lost the championship game. If Palace had been reduced to ten men and without their number one, the game would have undoubtedly been different from what transpired. Wayne Rooney was outspoken in his commentary over Henderson’s behaviour.
Henderson considered the event after the game and said, according to Metro:
“I went to give Guardiola a handshake. I believe that the waste of time displeased him. “You got the ten minutes you wanted,” I said. No animosity.
Guardiola, however, was questioned about the possible dismissal as well, but he merely grinned when the issue was posed. He just said:
“I don’t officiate.”
Furthermore, he maintained that he had not spoken to Henderson.
Palace has guaranteed its spot in the Europa League for the upcoming season by winning the FA Cup for the first time ever. It is a prize for what has undoubtedly been Palace’s best-ever Premier League season and a credit to the work Oliver Glasner has done since joining the team in early 2024.
Given his managerial background, Guardiola will undoubtedly bounce back from the defeat, even if it takes some time to process the fact that a season has ended without a title. However, he was clearly not impressed by Henderson’s antics and subsequent fortunate in avoiding a red card at the end of the game.
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