BY ANDREW MCSTEEN
Crystal Palace defender Tyrick Mitchell has revealed that he remembers little from their FA Cup victory on Saturday – but that his winners medal will be something he never forgets.
The Palace academy graduate grew up in various places near Brent, the borough Wembley Stadium is located in, starting his career with local team AFC Wembley.
“It’s amazing,” the 25-year-old told the South London Press about the 1-0 victory over Manchester City. “It’s amazing to come back to an area that I’m familiar with and win in front of my family, my friends and the fans – it’s an amazing feeling.
“This is what you play for. You play to win medals, win trophies, and we were was able to do it against a good side.
“It was all a blur,” he added, about going up the famous stairs at the stadium to pick up his winner’s medal and lift the trophy.
“I’ve watched previous FA Cup finals and watched the teams walk up the stairs, and it always looks like something that I would want to do, and doing it was just a surreal moment. I wouldn’t know how to explain it, but I’m just blessed that I was able to do it.”
Mitchell was part of an Eagles defence and wider team performance which kept another clean sheet in their FA Cup run – their fifth in six games.
Despite Mitchell conceding a first-half penalty, which was saved by Dean Henderson, the former Brentford academy player could not put a foot wrong.
“I could tell from their (Manchester City) line-up, that they have good wingers, so I was just trying to prepare myself for that the whole week – we were just preparing for the match as normal, just like any other game,” he said.
“We knew what’s on the line, but you just want to continue your same routines.
“You don’t want to get ahead of yourself and not get too low, you just want to do stuff that you’re familiar with, and that’s what we did. I know how good I can be defensively, so I just tried to show that.”
With a wide smile on his face, Mitchell was quick to praise his goalkeeper, as well as fellow defender Daniel Munoz and match-winner Ebere Eze when asked.
“I know how good Deano is,” said Mitchell about the penalty save. “I was hoping he saved it and he pulled off a good save. I’m just that he’s in goal for me.
“He’s just an engine, that’s the best word to describe him,” added the defender about fellow wing back Munoz, who won the man of the match award.
“He doesn’t stop and we’re just blessed to have him and Eze, he’s one of the best players in the Premier League. You see that week in, week out. We’re just blessed to have him. It was a great goal, and I’m just happy for him and for the team.”
With the FA Cup win, Crystal Palace can begin their first Europa League campaign, but Mitchell is not thinking about that too much, rather his winner’s medal and what he is going to do with his cup final shirt.
“I’m going to give it to my mum,” said Mitchell about his shirt, before moving on to if he had thought about European qualification yet. “It hasn’t sunk in – I haven’t really been thinking about it.
“We’re just enjoying winning the FA Cup, but it’s another bonus. It’s beautiful. It’s something I dreamed of. That’s what we set out to do when we came here today. We’re happy that we got over the line. I’m just happy that I’m able to wear the medal and we’re able to win in front of the fans.”
PICTURE: KEITH GILLARD
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