Manchester United players celebrate winning the 2016 FA Cup final.
Story highlights
- Manchester United defeats Crystal Palace 2-1 in FA Cup final
- Jesse Lingard scores stunning winner in extra time
- Juan Mata had canceled out Jason Puncheon's opener for Palace
Ten-man Manchester United won the English FA Cup for the first time since 2004 as it battled back to defeat Crystal Palace after extra time at Wembley Stadium Saturday.
Substitute Jason Puncheon had fired beyond David de Gea on 77 minutes to give Palace the advantage as a hitherto low-key match came to life late on.
But United were level within minutes. Marouane Fellaini controlled Wayne Rooney's cross with his chest allowing Juan Mata to volley low past Hennessey.
United captain, Rooney, was lucky to escape punishment for a challenge on Puncheon in the first period of extra time.
United captain, Rooney, was lucky to escape punishment for a challenge on Puncheon in the first period of extra time.
However, Chris Smalling wasn't so fortunate as he received a second yellow card followed by his marching orders for hauling down Yannick Bolasie when Palace broke moments later.
Palace immediately looked to take advantage of its numerical advantage, coming close through substitute Dwight Gayle.
Yet it would be another sub who would have the final say. Jesse Lingard ran onto a blocked shot from United striker, Anthony Martial, and let rip a stunning volley that arrowed into Hennessey's top corner.
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Jesse Lingard celebrates scoring the winning goal in the 2016 FA Cup final. |
'A special moment'
"I'm delighted. It's a special moment. It's a competition I have loved watching as a fan growing up," United captain Wayne Rooney told BBC Sport as he celebrated his first ever FA Cup triumph on the pitch after the match.
"I've been to two finals and lost, so I will enjoy it tonight for sure," he added.
United coach, Louis Van Gaal was equally delighted to pick up his first trophy as a manager in England.
"It is fantastic to win this title for the club, for the fans, and also for me because I now have won the cup in four countries, and not many managers have done that," Van Gaal said.
Van Gaal has been under severe pressure to bring silverware and winning football to the Old Trafford club.
It was reported by BBC Sport and Sky Sports shortly after the full time whistle that the Dutchman would be replaced as United boss by former Chelsea and Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho early next week.
Yet when these reports were put to Van Gaal by reporters at the post match press conference, he sharply refused to entertain them.
"I show you the (FA) Cup. I don't discuss (my future) with the media," he said in comments carried by the UK's Press Association.#
The Palace wait goes on
For a vanquished Palace, the wait for the club's first major trophy goes on.
The south London club was founded in 1910 and has yet to win one of England's major prizes.
But the Eagles manager, Alan Pardew, remained proud of his players despite the disappointment.
"My players gave everything. Everything. And they deserved to win but the game is like that.
Pardew was part of the last Palace team to reach an FA Cup final back in 1990, when it was defeated by Alex Ferguson's Manchester United after a replay.
"It's such a shame. We did a lot of things very well, we hurt them on the break, the referee didn't help us but we grew into the game.
"I'm so proud of the club, we have been dignified in defeat and we look forward to next year," he added.
Man United's FA Cup win upstaged by Louis van Gaal, Jose Mourinho rumours
Steve Nicol of ESPN FC's assesses whether Louis van Gaal should be manager next season despite Man United's FA Cup feat.
If this was the last stand of Louis van Gaal, then what a fitting way it was for the Dutchman to bow out. Saturday's FA Cup final was an underwhelming, pedestrian performance with players out of position all over the park. The expectation was impending failure, and then Manchester United sneaked the result at the end, winning 2-1 in extra-time over Crystal Palace.
It is their first FA Cup since 2004 but more pertinently, it is their first non-Community Shield trophy since the departure of Sir Alex Ferguson. And yet, it seems certain that Van Gaal will leave. In a heated news conference, he clashed with journalists, lashing out at those he called "his friends in the media" in a voice that dripped with sarcasm.
Rumours had swirled around Wembley hours before kickoff, suggesting that Jose Mourinho was waiting in the wings, a deal to install him as manager all but agreed. By the time Van Gaal appeared before the press, the FA Cup in his hands following a hard-fought win, most were already reporting Mourinho's appointment as a done deal.
It was not the typically triumphant news conference of a victorious manager -- and yet you could understand why United will make the change.
It is increasingly difficult to understand the logic of so many of Van Gaal's decisions and it has been repeatedly reported that many players have been questioning his methods for some time. But for all his shortcomings, he will leave a dual legacy.
First, he has left them a trophy. Had it not been for the goals of Juan Mata and Jesse Lingard, Manchester United would have endured three full years without silverware, unacceptable for a club of their stature and means. But he has also left them a crop of promising young players. Lingard's volley was sensational. Marcus Rashford was, up until his unfortunate injury, excellent. Others, like Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Timothy Fosu-Mensah, have played their part at times this season.
These are players that other managers might have ignored or dispatched to faraway lands on extended loan spells, but they've been given their chance to flourish by Van Gaal. It remains to be seen if his successor will offer the same opportunities. It hasn't all been by choice, given injuries throughout the season, but he deserves credit nonetheless.
Jesse Lingard scored the winning goal, vindication for Louis van Gaal's trust in young talent. Will his successor do the same?
The Dutchman spoke with characteristic defiance after the match, accusing journalists of "undermining his authority." In reference to reports that the dropped Memphis Depay didn't travel to Wembley with the team, he barked "don't write what you don't know." There will be much sympathy for Van Gaal on that score, especially from those United fans who always respected his spirit and his strength.
His predecessor, David Moyes, often seemed as if the scrutiny of the role was too much for him. For van Gaal, this was not an issue. But those tactics. Those players in those positions. This, truly, was peak Van Gaal.
After two years and over a quarter-of-a-billion pounds, United played a cup final with a right-back (Matteo Darmian) at left-back, a right winger (Antonio Valencia) at right-back, a midfielder (Daley Blind) at centre-back, a centre-forward (Wayne Rooney) in central midfield with another (Anthony Martial) on the left wing, a No. 10 (Juan Mata) on the right wing and, after Rashford's injury, a winger (Ashley Young) up front before his redeployment to left-back when Chris Smalling was sent off.
Inevitably, this mixed-up team gave a mixed-up performance. Like an old but well-made drill passing slowly through the side of a bank vault, Rooney changed the game with his second-half run that led to Mata's equaliser, but it was one of the few instances of direct, assertive football. For much of the game, United preferred to sweep the ball from side to side, dominating possession but creating little. Voices from the United end broke out in frustration: "Pass the ball forwards!"
Rooney was hit and miss throughout, looking sluggish but willing. Michael Carrick was mostly steady and unspectacular, a lone man encapsulation of his team. Marouane Fellaini was as stylish and effective as a hammer tossed through a window. He missed two golden opportunities to head his team into the lead but won so much in the air that it was inevitable he would have a part in a United goal at some point. This was not a dynamic midfield but equally, it was not one that would easily give up possession.
The Dutchman spoke with characteristic defiance after the match, accusing journalists of "undermining his authority." In reference to reports that the dropped Memphis Depay didn't travel to Wembley with the team, he barked "don't write what you don't know." There will be much sympathy for Van Gaal on that score, especially from those United fans who always respected his spirit and his strength.
His predecessor, David Moyes, often seemed as if the scrutiny of the role was too much for him. For van Gaal, this was not an issue. But those tactics. Those players in those positions. This, truly, was peak Van Gaal.
After two years and over a quarter-of-a-billion pounds, United played a cup final with a right-back (Matteo Darmian) at left-back, a right winger (Antonio Valencia) at right-back, a midfielder (Daley Blind) at centre-back, a centre-forward (Wayne Rooney) in central midfield with another (Anthony Martial) on the left wing, a No. 10 (Juan Mata) on the right wing and, after Rashford's injury, a winger (Ashley Young) up front before his redeployment to left-back when Chris Smalling was sent off.
Inevitably, this mixed-up team gave a mixed-up performance. Like an old but well-made drill passing slowly through the side of a bank vault, Rooney changed the game with his second-half run that led to Mata's equaliser, but it was one of the few instances of direct, assertive football. For much of the game, United preferred to sweep the ball from side to side, dominating possession but creating little. Voices from the United end broke out in frustration: "Pass the ball forwards!"
Rooney was hit and miss throughout, looking sluggish but willing. Michael Carrick was mostly steady and unspectacular, a lone man encapsulation of his team. Marouane Fellaini was as stylish and effective as a hammer tossed through a window. He missed two golden opportunities to head his team into the lead but won so much in the air that it was inevitable he would have a part in a United goal at some point. This was not a dynamic midfield but equally, it was not one that would easily give up possession.
Van Gaal's celebration was short-lived given the rumours surrounding his replacement. It's a cruel end, if true.
Crystal Palace were starved of the ball and when they did manage to get it, they were frustrated by either poor decision-making from their players or by the referee Mark Clattenburg, who was roundly booed by Palace fans when collecting his medal after the game. His crime? Failing to play advantage when Connor Wickham was fouled by Smalling and for refusing to give a penalty when Rooney appeared to bundle over Wilfried Zaha.
Alan Pardew was not in the mood to apportion blame. "He's given an honest performance," he said of Clattenburg. "The penalty, that is a tough decision. In real time, that's difficult. The [Wickham] decision was a really tough one but there's nothing there other than he blew a little early. You can chastise him for that, but it's an honest mistake."
Palace took the lead with a powerful finish from substitute Jason Puncheon, but Pardew will forever rue the way this game squirmed away from his team, though perhaps not as much as the dance with which he celebrated his team's goal. "I enjoyed that moment," he said. "If you'll forgive me for my dance, it was because I enjoyed it."
Palace held their lead for just three minutes and then went behind to Van Gaal's 10 men in extra-time. Whatever else you can say about this team, they have a certain steel. First Rooney sliced the hitherto resilient Palace apart and created the equaliser. Then Lingard unleashed a ferocious shot to win the Cup. You could make waspish comments about the merits of the FA Cup in comparison to the trophies United used to win, but there was no indication that anyone in the United end felt that these were reduced circumstances.
Saturday's victory was undoubtedly the high-water mark of a disappointing season, and indeed a disappointing tenure for Van Gaal. But this was a trophy. This was a chance to celebrate again and Van Gaal was responsible for that moment. He deserved better than the aftermath of his victory tarnished by questions of his future. But it might be too late. If the rumours are true, this was his last act as a United manager.
Crystal Palace were starved of the ball and when they did manage to get it, they were frustrated by either poor decision-making from their players or by the referee Mark Clattenburg, who was roundly booed by Palace fans when collecting his medal after the game. His crime? Failing to play advantage when Connor Wickham was fouled by Smalling and for refusing to give a penalty when Rooney appeared to bundle over Wilfried Zaha.
Alan Pardew was not in the mood to apportion blame. "He's given an honest performance," he said of Clattenburg. "The penalty, that is a tough decision. In real time, that's difficult. The [Wickham] decision was a really tough one but there's nothing there other than he blew a little early. You can chastise him for that, but it's an honest mistake."
Palace took the lead with a powerful finish from substitute Jason Puncheon, but Pardew will forever rue the way this game squirmed away from his team, though perhaps not as much as the dance with which he celebrated his team's goal. "I enjoyed that moment," he said. "If you'll forgive me for my dance, it was because I enjoyed it."
Palace held their lead for just three minutes and then went behind to Van Gaal's 10 men in extra-time. Whatever else you can say about this team, they have a certain steel. First Rooney sliced the hitherto resilient Palace apart and created the equaliser. Then Lingard unleashed a ferocious shot to win the Cup. You could make waspish comments about the merits of the FA Cup in comparison to the trophies United used to win, but there was no indication that anyone in the United end felt that these were reduced circumstances.
Saturday's victory was undoubtedly the high-water mark of a disappointing season, and indeed a disappointing tenure for Van Gaal. But this was a trophy. This was a chance to celebrate again and Van Gaal was responsible for that moment. He deserved better than the aftermath of his victory tarnished by questions of his future. But it might be too late. If the rumours are true, this was his last act as a United manager.
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