Palace’s American duo Chris Richards and Matt Turner were elated with Palace’s FA Cup win and, amidst the scenes, they managed to put the feeling into words - somehow.
There was so much going on, an outpouring of emotion all over the red and blue half of Wembley in the stands and on the pitch, and Palace TV managed to get the raw emotion from our two American Eagles.
“Amazing, it's sick. It’s so good to win the trophy good to do it with my boy right here.” Richards said, embraced by Turner.
“That's right.” the goalkeeper added with a smile on his face.
“I think if you told anybody that this was going to be the result of the season, we would have taken it at the beginning.
“So, obviously, we know we could be better, but, I mean, obviously being a loan player, coming in, it was a little bit tricky, but this is just unbelievable. I feel so loved here, the people, it's been so great.
“Great experiences and we brought this club to where it deserves and these fans deserve Europe.”
Richards added: “I wasn't even thinking about Europe! I just wanted to win a trophy, so that's even better. I think, you know, we had a tough start to the season, but I think we turned it around pretty quickly and I think we fully deserved it.”
Being part of the Goalkeeper Union, Turner got a few more words of praise in for Dean Henderson, Palace’s Player of the Match in the final.
“Yeah, I don't want to take too much credit for it! Nah, I mean, Deano's been great all year. Fantastic, big saves, timely moments and, yeah, he was locked in from the start.
“So, I was really pleased for him and at the end of the day, as much as I want to be out there playing, I'm just happy to bring the club the trophy and for us to win. I'm really proud of Deano, he knows that and, yeah, we can't wait to celebrate!
Not letting the goalkeepers get all the credit, Richards intervened: “Man, we do what we can [as defenders]! I mean, at the end of the day, Dean saved us a few times. So, again, we work well together.
The duo concluded with incredible words on the fans that will resonate forever: “We have the best fans in the league. I don't care what anybody says!
“You know, they turned up. Turned London up as well, made it red and blue all across London. They’re the best fans, they deserve it more than we do.
“You won't remember the little moments throughout the season, but these are the moments that you'll always remember.
“And I think for us, the message was clear. Tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of people, you know, here to celebrate. We made lifelong memories for them, and that's the most important thing.
“... USA! USA!”
