The journey of Crystal Palace to the 1990 FA Cup final is still cherished as one of the most legendary periods in the history of the club.
Ex-Eagles midfielder Alan Pardew played a central role, scoring the decisive extra-time goal against Liverpool in a legendary semi-final clash at Villa Park to secure the team’s spot in the Wembley finale.
Incredibly, this thrilling 4-3 triumph occurred only a few months after the Reds had thoroughly dominated Palace in a 9-0 defeat at Anfield.
Pardew reflects on Palace’s FA Cup journey
To Pardew, the sheer difference between those two games illustrated the true spirit of the Palace squad, who moved past that massive defeat earlier in the season without lingering on it.
“I was on the pitch for that infamous 9-0 league loss to Liverpool just a few months prior,” Pardew remembers when speaking to FourFourTwo. The sheer weight of that blowout and the disappointment that followed would ultimately set the stage for one of the most iconic highlights of his playing days.
“Yet that is precisely what rendered the cup victory so extraordinary,” he points out. “Going from utter embarrassment to pure ecstasy in such a short time.”
Ultimately, it was how the squad bounced back from that heavy beating that truly showed the character of Palace that year.
“It proved just how mentally tough our squad was,” he goes on to say, shifting focus to his own contribution to the win, particularly his decisive goal in the 109th minute.
“That single goal thrust me into the public eye for what was likely the first time ever,” he explains. “Out of nowhere, every paper, broadcaster, and television network was desperate for an interview.”
This sudden wave of attention was a novel experience for Pardew and his colleagues, especially as the culture of football was starting to transition into mainstream entertainment after the troubled era of the 1980s.
“I believe those two semi-finals were the very first ones to be broadcast live consecutively on TV,” he notes, before reflecting on how close the Eagles came to facing another underdog team at Wembley.
“I recall watching the other match later on, desperately hoping Oldham would pull off an upset against Manchester United.
“They came incredibly close, and we were nearly looking at a Palace versus Oldham final, which would have been highly unusual.”
