Manchester City’s last bid for silverware this season ended on Saturday after they were . Despite spending nearly 200 million Euros in the January transfer window to rescue their season, City have fallen short in the Premier League, Champions League and now the FA Cup.
Omar Marmoush had a first-half penalty saved by Henderson as City lost in the Cup final for a second successive season, summing up a harrowing campaign in which they have been dethroned as the powerhouse of English football and will go without a domestic trophy for the first time since 2016-17.
Erling Haaland, City’s usual penalty taker, handed the ball to Marmoush with 10 minutes left in the first half and Palace 1-0 up after Eberechi Eze’s early goal, but Henderson guessed correctly to deny him.
Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney questioned Haaland’s decision and said he is not like Messi or Ronaldo.
“Erling Haaland is a world-class forward, but when we’re talking about Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, there’s no way they’re giving that ball away,” Rooney said on BBC Sport.
“That’s what separates those two players from Erling Haaland or Kylian Mbappe and these players. They are selfish and they want to score every game,” he added.
“When he misses chances, I think you can see it gets to him and it does affect him. Maybe the thought of taking a penalty at Wembley might have been too much for him. You never know, he’s a human being,” he said for Haaland.
Rooney also minced no words on Dean Henderson’s use of his hand outside the area in the first half. “Just get rid of VAR. They have made a mistake and now they are trying to cover up. It is a red card and everyone can see it’s a red card. To come out with all this rubbish,” he said.
