Crystal Palace and Liverpool played an exhilarating 2-2 draw in the 2025 FA Community Shield at Wembley Stadium on August 10, 2025, with Crystal Palace winning 3-2 on penalties to lift the trophy.
Match Summary and Key Moments
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Early Liverpool lead:
Liverpool’s new signing Hugo Ekitike marked his debut spectacularly by scoring within the first four minutes. He finished with precision after an incisive build-up, putting Liverpool ahead early. -
Crystal Palace equalizers:
Crystal Palace was awarded a penalty when Virgil van Dijk fouled Jean-Philippe Mateta, who calmly converted to level the score. Later in the match, Jeremie Frimpong, somewhat unintentionally, scored what turned out to be a sensational shot for Liverpool, but Palace kept fighting. Ismaila Sarr then scored a composed goal for Palace, bringing the score back to 2-2. -
Late drama and defensive errors:
Liverpool’s van Dijk had a subpar game by his standards, including giving away the penalty. Liverpool briefly regained the lead but Palace showed resilience to equalize again. Liverpool’s loss of shape after substituting Ekitike and changes in attack contributed to their struggles in closing out the game.
Penalty Shootout
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Crystal Palace’s goalkeeper Dean Henderson was the hero in the shootout, saving two penalties to secure a 3-2 victory for Palace.
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The win marked Crystal Palace’s first-ever FA Community Shield title and their second trophy at Wembley in just a few months.
Notable Performances
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Hugo Ekitike (Liverpool): Scored on debut and showed promise before being substituted.
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Jean-Philippe Mateta (Crystal Palace): Scored the crucial penalty and helped Palace stay in contention.
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Ismaila Sarr (Crystal Palace): Netted a key equalizing goal.
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Dean Henderson (Crystal Palace): Man of the match with decisive saves in the penalty shootout.
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Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool): Had an uncharacteristically weak game, including conceding the penalty.
