Palace versus City is exactly why FA Cup remains great

Today’s tantalising final between two sides who want to win for very different reasons reminds us that it’s still so relevant

- MIGUEL DELANEY

Just at the point when Crystal Palace's FA Cup run was about to take off, manager Oliver Glasner offered a little insight into one of the reasons why. The Austrian was settling into the dugout before the 3-0 evisceration of Fulham at Craven Cottage, and had a moment to appreciate the atmosphere.

“This is why I love football,” Glasner enthused. Pep Guardiola would no doubt agree as he steps out onto the Wembley pitch before tomorrow’s final between Palace and his Manchester City, having this week described the FA Cup as the most “beautiful domestic cup competition in the world”.

Glasner certainly paid due respect to that status throughout Palace’s run, never once displaying any kind of modern attitude towards the cup. Glasner has played full teams in every round, and every game has been treated like the final itself. Palace would value victory in the actual final more than arguably anyone in the English game, given the club has never won a major trophy. The closest they came was two previous FA Cup finals, both lost to Manchester United, of which we’re likely to see a lot of highlights in the build-up. That nostalgia might fit.

A theme of Palace’s season has been Glasner telling the players to listen to the joy in the schoolyard near their training ground, and that is never going to be more apt than before a fixture where childhood dreams can be fulfilled. The deeper point is to remind his players why they first played football, and to use that energy.