Crystal Palace attacker Eberechi Eze celebrates after winning the FA Cup against Manchester City
If that is how he chooses to go out at Crystal Palace, then Eberechi Eze could not have done it in a more fitting way. Just as he was in the FA Cup semi-final, the dazzling attacker was the difference-maker at Wembley Stadium once more on Saturday.
Taking the prime time shift with no other elite football being played in England, Eze proved to be the match winner out of nothing after just over half an hour. Playing a matter of miles from where he was born, Eze now has a trophy in his individual cabinet and a golden medal to add to his personal stash.
He is someone who deserves this sort of glory and to be on the biggest stage. Next season he will be in Europe one way or another. Palace fans will be desperate to see him venture into the Europa League with them but it would not be a surprise if he was on an even bigger front.
Eze rightfully has suitors from across the country and continent. He has spent the last few years being linked with a move away from Selhurst Park only to remain committed to the club which took him from EFL star to a potential Champions League weapon.
It has been almost two years since he last signed an extension at Palace, though, and he is halfway through his current deal. When the summer comes, a decision will have to be made.
Palace do not have to worry about losing him for free because 2027 is still some way off, but once players enter their final two years, things get complicated. Marc Guehi has a little over 12 months left to run on his own contract and will only be losing value by the day if Palace do not cash in on him soon.
That is a pressing issue which looks likely to come to a resolution with a sale this summer. For Eze it is not quite as straightforward. He could choose to reward Palace for all their work and faith in him by staying for the European tour, seeing how far it goes. Or, he can use this as the platform that his performances have warranted, and a step up to the very top.
Much like with Michael Olise, who was picked up by Bayern Munich for around £50m in 2024, Eze would not have anybody begrudge him if he was to depart. He has proven his worth and shown great ambition with Palace.
This feels like both a moment in time and the potential end. It could be the start of something even greater and the sort of extended affair with Palace that kept Wilfried Zaha on board despite constant links away, or it is the perfect farewell.
It is hard to know just which one this is. Eze celebrated his goal at Wembley with sheer glee. He will know what the narrative and feeling around this game is.
He sunk to his knees close to the corner flag by the Manchester City supporters and was flocked by his teammates. Eze pointed to the sky and his players crowded around him.
With more than an hour left to play, Eze was not able to influence proceedings like he often can in the Premier League but he also didn’t have to. He was not the best player on the pitch because he did not have to be and simply could not be.
Instead, he demonstrated exactly why there is so much to like about his all-round game. Eze tracked back, he dropped deep to plug the gaps around the Palace defence.
Kevin De Bruyne fouled him, so did Josko Gvardiol. City nibbled at his ankles to shut down counter attacks and they needed to cut Palace off at the source. In a game like no other for Eze, with the pressure on his every touch more important than ever, he found space to shoot and score at the one time City lost him.
It is this sort of brutal efficiency which has never really been asked of Eze, not when the stakes are this high. His calmness, composure, and quality to deliver are just as much a testament to his ability as anything else. He never stopped running to defend, constantly doubling up with his partners at wing-back or in the middle.
Kicks were aimed at him as he twisted and turned to relieve some pressure. It was a selfless display with the monumental accolade to come his way regardless. Eze left everything out on the grass when he needed to soak it all up.
After keeping his head to focus during the game, which included an extraordinarily resolute effort from Palace as a squad, Eze then let loose at full-time. He streaked off to enjoy his own acclaim and attention from the west end of Wembley.
Eze ripped off his shirt and stood there in his blue thermal layer. He pumped his fists, danced around, jumped from foot to foot, waving his arms in the air. At 26, Eze delivered exactly what Glasner had asked of his players before the game.
“What is clear is that we should feel no burden today,” he had written in the pre-match programme notes. “Pressure comes when you are trying to avoid relegation, when you are playing for your future, the future of the football club and the club’s employees.
“But playing in an FA Cup final means that you can achieve something incredible. If you feel pressure on days like today then which games can you enjoy?
“This is what we are all playing for, this is the childhood dream! When these players were kids, I’m sure they all watched the cup finals and dreamed of one day being involved in one. Now, everyone has a chance to fulfil that childhood dream.”
For Eze, perhaps more than most due to his ties to the area, this is an enormous triumph. He was taken away with the emotion, eventually throwing his match shirt to the floor. He opened out his hands to the Palace fans and drew in the cheers, the love, the sheer emotion and scale of these seconds.
It was a passage which encapsulated his adoration of Palace. That is something that a possible new team of his will have to somehow match or at least persuade him to ditch. It will not be easy. It is the clearest sign of a player who is indebted to a club and whose bond grows only stronger.
Eze is a player who more than jusitifes these such sporting climaxes. Just as it would have been hard to form a clear picture of just what this means to the 33,000 fans around him and to find sense in the madness, Eze will now have to navigate those feelings with transfer draws to follow.
If this is how it ends for Eze (although there will be two more games in the Premier League) then it is a dream come true. If it is merely a defining chapter in his continuing Palace story then it is the stuff of fairytales.
