‘This is the year of the underdog – and I love it!’

Crystal Palace, then Newcastle. I remarked on BBC One following Saturday’s FA Cup final that 2025 is the year of the underdog, and I adore it!

I was there myself only a few weeks ago when Newcastle won the Carabao Cup final, so I am aware of how Palace fans felt after watching their side defeat Manchester City.

I had waited my entire life to see my team bring home a significant trophy, just like they did. This is their first piece of silverware in the palace’s history, and Palace supporters can tell how important it is to them, right away when I’m co-commentating at Wembley.

They shook their team off right away, reminding me of the fans who cheered their side every time they went to the ground. They essentially drowned out the City’s supporters throughout the majority of the game, and I experienced every emotion along with them throughout the entire 90 minutes and even afterwards.

When the board went up and there was 10 minutes of stoppage time, you could see the agony on their faces, and when I looked around I saw everyone holding their hands in the same stadium as I did when I watched Liverpool play the final game.

When the celebrations were just beginning, I witnessed both the joy and the tears afterwards. On Sunday and Monday, many of them will have sore heads, and I have no regrets about it.

I know I did when it came to finally getting Newcastle’s chance to win something, so they should absolutely make the most of it.

When a team lifts a trophy, what do you do next? However, the only thing Palace should be anticipating right now is Tuesday’s home game against Wolves because there is going to be a heck of a party at Selhurst Park, aside from enjoying European football for the first time next season.

Because they have some very talented players who other clubs might try to sign, they will have to decide whether to sell them or keep them in the summer.

The Palace players gave such impressive individual performances, and I thought they were also the better team. They gave everything to get their victory, and they deserved it.

They all put their bodies on the line, whether it was blocking shots, crossing the line, or passing. Two, three, or even four men were thrown in the air in desperation, doing everything in their power to stop City, which was admirable to watch.

In the end, Palace appeared to have won every tackle, and it was getting better from all those close calls that ultimately led to the team getting over the line.

I don’t believe you can attribute any one thing to Palace’s victory, but they did have that work and a game that worked: they were content to let City have the ball, defend deep, and then attempt to hit them on the break.

When Erling Haaland ran out of the first half, they decided not to send off goalkeeper Dean Henderson for his handball outside his box, which is a constant requirement for success.

When City consider what they could have done differently on Saturday, they will be thinking a lot about who and what should have been given.

I was surprised that Erling Haaland decided to award a penalty in an FA Cup final despite Pep Guardiola pretty much saying in his post-match interview that it was the players’ responsibility to sort it out.

Haaland has already missed three penalties this season and is just recovering from an injury, but he has managed to score 30 goals overall. Every time I step in his shoes, I pay the penalty.

Hearing Henderson speak after the game made the situation even more fascinating. He claimed he didn’t know the direction he was going from the spot if Haaland had taken it despite the fact that he was obviously aware of where Marmoush was going to place his penalty.

City obviously had a great opportunity to level up, but I don’t believe they did enough after that to earn a lot of money.

Before the game was over, Nico O’Reilly had a decent chance, and he could have scored sooner, but he instead chose to cut back on his left foot and was crowded out.

Due to Tuesday’s enormous Premier League game against Bournemouth, City must move past this disappointment quickly.

They really need to win it because they are currently in sixth place and out of the Champions League positions. In essence, it’s another cup final for them.

Regardless of whether they finish in the top five or not, I can see Pep’s squad experiencing significant player turnover over the summer.

We are aware that Jack Grealish is leaving, but Guardiola preferred to start him off the bench when he was desperate for a goal against Palace, as opposed to sending him on.

There are potential changes, and there must be them, really. Although this City team has been incredible, they have come to an end of their dominance and require some freshmen to challenge for the title once more.

Even if they invest a lot and add a few players, I’m not sure if they can return to the heights that Guardiola led them to during the previous few seasons as the nation’s top team.

However, it is absolutely necessary to make things better. With two games left, and without a trophy for the first time since 2016-17, they have already set a very poor season, given the heights they have reached.