LONDON (AP) — Crystal Palace is getting another shot at winning the FA Cup — and won’t have to meet Manchester United in the final this time.
Palace beat Aston Villa 3-0 at Wembley Stadium on Saturday to advance to the May 17 title match back at the home of English soccer.
It will be the south London club’s third appearance in the final, after 1990 and 2016. On both occasions, Palace was beaten by Man United.
Eberechi Eze smashed home a shot from the edge of the area in the 31st minute for the opening goal after good work from Ismaila Sa, who finished Villa off with two second-half goals.
Sa scored in the 58th and again in the fourth minute of stoppage time to seal a convincing win over an opponent that reached the Champions League quarterfinals this season.
Villa — a seven-time FA Cup winner — was eliminated from Europe by Paris Saint-Germain last week and has just a top-five finish in the Premier League to play for as it looks to secure a return to the Champions League. Villa is in seventh place in the league.
It could have been a bigger margin of victory for Palace, with Jean-Philippe Mateta missing a penalty in the 53rd.
Palace, which has never won a major trophy, will meet Manchester City or Nottingham Forest in the final. They meet on Sunday, also at Wembley.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
The Associated Press
