Crystal Palace took a 1-0 lead into the halftime break of the FA Cup final against Man City, but it was not without controversy.
The contest was expected to be a thrilling affair after the previous two games between the pair this season, and that is what played out during the first 45 minutes at Wembley.
Sam Allardyce said this week that Man City have an advantage over Crystal Palace heading into the FA Cup final, as the former Premier League boss thinks the Manchester club’s experience in big games could get them over the line.
Pep Guardiola’s men dominated possession and looked comfortable, but they fell behind after Man City target Eberechi Eze punished them on the break.
Even though City had the chance to equalise with a penalty, they may feel hard done by as Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson could have seen a red card.
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
Photo by Shaun Botterill/Getty Images
The reason Dean Henderson avoided FA Cup final red card
Having gone a goal down, Man City thought they had a way back into the game when Crystal Palace goalkeeper Henderson handled the ball outside of his area, which seemingly denied Haaland a goalscoring chance.
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The Englishman avoided a red card, and in the aftermath, it was explained how VAR came to that conclusion.
“The VAR has had a good look at it and has decided that the direction of play was going to the wide area, and therefore it wasn’t the denial of a goalscoring opportunity,” Sam Matterface read out on ITV.
“VAR said the ball is travelling away from the goal, so therefore it’s not a goalscoring opportunity.”
Many will disagree with the call, and one of them was ITV pundit Ally McCoist, who believed that the offence was committed when a goalscoring chance was present.
Ally McCoist thinks Dean Henderson should have seen a red card in the FA Cup final
Speaking after the incident took place at Wembley, McCoist couldn’t believe the decision VAR came to, which will add to the frustrations of Man City fans.
“Hang on a minute now, where he touches the ball, it’s a goalscoring opportunity, but where he puts the ball makes it a non goalscoring opportunity, where the offence is committed is a goalscoring opportunity surely,” the pundit said on ITV.
The topic will very likely be discussed hours after the final whistle, and hopefully, it will not be a deciding factor in the contest.