This weekend sees the 144th edition of the FA Cup final as Crystal Palace and Manchester City meet at Wembley.
Palace are looking to win their first major trophy, while City are looking to make up for last year’s 2-1 defeat to rivals Manchester United.
Read on as NetBet previews one of English football’s biggest fixtures, with odds and betting tips to help with your football bets this weekend.
And if you are looking to include Crystal Palace vs Manchester City in a combo bet, our Acca Boost feature can increase your potential winnings.
Crystal Palace vs Manchester United
Saturday, May 17, 4.30pm
Wembley Stadium, London
Live on BBC One & ITV1
Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Preview
Palace are looking to pull off more heroics against a Champions League-chasing team after beating Aston Villa 3-0 in the semi-finals, courtesy of a brilliant brace from Ismaila Sarr.
Oliver Glasner’s side were simply too good on the day and the Eagles enter the final on the back of a morale-boosting 2-0 win at Tottenham.
And Palace may very well relish the ‘underdog’ tag, with City under enormous pressure to claim the victory after sub-par performances in the Premier League and Champions League.
Pep Guardiola’s men beat Nottingham Forest 2-0 in the semis, just two weeks after they thrashed Palace 5-2 at the Etihad.
The latter result was the start of a five-match winning run, although that came to an abrupt halt last weekend as relegated Southampton unexpectedly held the Citizens to a 0-0 draw.
Erling Haaland made his return from injury at St Mary’s, but his ineffective display must surely have pleased Glanser and his defenders as they make their final preparations for the final.
The Norwegian’s comeback also presents Guardiola with a few selection headaches in attack, with January arrival Omar Marmoush demoted to the bench against the Saints.
As for Palace, their XI pretty much picks itself, with the brilliant Eberechi Eze joining Sarr in support of top scorer Jean-Philippe Mateta.
Eze scored both goals against Spurs on the weekend and if Palace are to pull off a shock, the England international will need to be at the peak of his powers – as will goalkeeper Dean Henderson and those in front of him!
Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Odds
*All odds are subject to change
City are the big favourites to win the final in 90 minutes at 1.75, with a Palace victory priced at 4.33. The draw is 3.79.
Crystal Palace vs Manchester City Betting Tips
Eberechi Eze to score or assist @ 2.88
As previously mentioned, Eze netted both goals against Spurs and appears to be hitting top form at the business end of the campaign. If Palace are to score another Wembley goal, we feel confident that Eze will play a major role in it.
Manchester City first goalscorer – Erling Haaland @ 2.60
Yes, he struggled against Southampton, but when it comes to the art of goalscoring, few have mastered it quite like Haaland. Even if he is still rusty after recovering from injury, the world-class marksman remains City’s most likely scorer.
Manchester City winning margin – 1 goal @ 3.47
Palace’s front three and marauding full-backs – Daniel Munoz in particular – can really trouble City, so we are expecting a close game. But in the end, the Citizens’ superior quality should just about see them over the line and allow Kevin De Bruyne to bow out with one more trophy on his CV.
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