Palace on brink of glory as they seek to make it third-time lucky

LONDON : Manchester City may regard Saturday's FA Cup final as some kind of consolation prize at the end of a humbling season but for opponents Crystal Palace it means far, far more.

While City's trophy cabinet has been groaning under the strain of a constant supply of silverware for more than a decade, Palace's has been simply gathering dust.

Palace, the south London club that retains an old-school charm thanks to its passionate fan-base and dated Selhurst Park stadium, have been in the Premier League since 2013, their longest uninterrupted residence in England's top flight.

During that period, however, the club has managed only two top-half finishes, and even those were modest 10th places.

Before that, the club with roots dating back to 1857 and the glittering, and now ruined, exhibition hall that it owes its name to, had bounced around the divisions with little reward.

In actual fact, Palace have never won a major trophy despite an esteemed list of former managers that include Arthur Rowe, Terry Venables, Roy Hodgson and the mercurial Malcolm Allison.

They reached their first FA Cup final in 1990, drawing a thrilling encounter 3-3 against Manchester United in which Ian Wright scored twice as a substitute before losing by the only goal in the replay.

Palace reached the final again in 2016 under Alan Pardew, again suffering heartbreak at the hands of United.

This time, despite being up against a still-formidable Manchester City, there is genuine optimism that it could be third time lucky and that Palace's anthem 'Glad All Over' will be echoing around Wembley Stadium in the early evening.

It is not blind optimism either. Austrian Oliver Glasner has moulded a team full of flair and tenacious work ethic in his 15 months in charge