Crystal Palace vs. Manchester City FA Cup final odds, best bets from proven expert
Here's SportsLine soccer expert Martin Green's top plays for Saturday's FA Cup final between Crystal Palace and Manchester City

Manchester City are hoping to capture at least one trophy this season when they meet Crystal Palace in Saturday's FA Cup final. City have been able to add at least one piece of silverware to the trophy cabinet every year since 2017-18, thanks in large part to six Premier League titles under manager Pep Guardiola. Man City have struggled in the league this season and still have some work to do to clinch a Champions League spot for next year, but Saturday presents an opportunity to salvage something from the campaign. City have won the FA Cup twice under Guardiola, last capturing the title in the 2022-23 season.
Crystal Palace have never won the FA Cup, though the club did appear in the final for this event back in 2016. The Eagles have quietly been solid of late with two wins and three draws over their last five matches across all competitions. That stretch includes a 3-0 win over Aston Villa in the FA Cup semifinal. In their last 15 matches across all competitions, Crystal Palace have just two losses, but one of those was a 5-2 beatdown at the hands of Manchester City.
Kickoff from Wembley Stadium is set for 11:30 a.m. ET. Manchester City have been designated as the road team for this match and they are -135 favorites (wager $135 to win $100) on the money line in regular time. Crystal Palace are +340 (wager $100 to win $340) underdogs and the draw in regular time comes in at +270. The total is 2.5 (Over -136, Under -102).
Before locking in your bets for the FA Cup final, be sure to check out SportsLine soccer expert Martin Green's top plays for the contest. Green regularly appears on "The Early Edge," which airs daily on SportsLine's YouTube channel. He finished the 2023-24 season with a 30-22-1 (+7.07 units) record on his Premier League picks and was also profitable in Euro qualifying (+6.30 units), the EFL Cup (+4.47), the FA Cup (+3.07) and the Champions League (+3.05) that year.
Check out Martin Green's full analysis and best bets for Crystal Palace vs. Manchester City:
Crystal Palace vs. Manchester City best bets (posted Friday, May 16):
Manchester City to win the cup: -130 (1u)
Both teams to score and Over 2.5 goals: +110 (0.5u)
Crystal Palace aim to win their first major trophy when they face Manchester City in the FA Cup final Saturday. The Eagles should be full of confidence after clinching an impressive 3-0 victory over Aston Villa in the semifinals. Playmaker Eberechi Eze opened the scoring in that game, and winger Ismaïla Sarr fired in two unstoppable strikes in the second half. Palace are currently on a five-game unbeaten streak in all competitions, which bodes well for their chances of success at Wembley this weekend. However, they will be heavy underdogs when they lock horns with this star-studded Man City team.
Man City Dominate the Head-to-Heads
Man City have won 15 major trophies since Pep Guardiola replaced Manuel Pellegrini as manager in 2016. Their haul includes six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, three EFL Cups, the Champions League, the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup. This has been their worst Premier League season since he took the reins. They are currently fourth in the table, 18 points behind Liverpool, after enduring a dismal run of results during the winter. However, they have improved in recent weeks. The Citizens have picked up five wins and three draws in their last eight league games, and they are highly likely to secure a place in next season's Champions League. They also beat Bournemouth 2-1 in the FA Cup quarterfinals before easing to a 2-0 victory over Nottingham Forest in the semifinals.
Man City are now unbeaten in their last 10 games across all competitions, so they are finishing the season with a flourish. Their best performance came on April 12, when they beat Crystal Palace 5-2 at the Etihad Stadium. Palace raced into a 2-0 lead courtesy of goals from Eze and Chris Richards, but it was one-way traffic from that point onwards. Kevin De Bruyne and Omar Marmoush scored to make it 2-2 at half-time, and goals from Mateo Kovačić, James McAtee and Nico O'Reilly handed City an emphatic win. Man City are now unbeaten in their last seven games against Palace, with four wins and three draws. These teams are normally involved in high-scoring clashes, as their last four matches finished 2-2, 4-2, 2-2 and 5-2.
Crystal Palace's Date with Destiny
Palace tend to start each season at a snail's pace before picking up momentum in the second half of the campaign. That has certainly been the case this year, as they have gone from strength to strength in recent weeks. The Eagles have picked up four wins, four draws and just two defeats in their last 10 league games, which has lifted them up to 12th in the table. They also secured back-to-back 3-0 wins against Fulham and Aston Villa in the FA Cup, with the in-form Eze leading the charge. Palace fans are daring to dream of glory, but those dreams are likely to be crushed by the ruthless Man City machine. Guardiola's men have been well below par this season, but these players still know how to get the job done in big games. They have played in many finals, and they typically end up lifting the trophy. By contrast, Crystal Palace have never won a trophy. The players will battle bravely, and they could cause plenty of problems for City's shaky defense, but the attacking quality of De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Phil Foden and Erling Haaland should ultimately decide this game.
















