Cork's Franco Umeh shines in Crystal Palace's Premier League International Cup win

FRANCO UMEH is 90 minutes away from his first trophy with Crystal Palace as the Eagles are through to the final of the Premier League International Cup, one of the most prestigious competitions for underage footballers in Europe.

The Eagles will face PSV Eindhoven at Selhurst Park later on this month, and Palace are looking to take home the prize for the first time.

They beat Valencia 3-2 on penalties to reach the final, with Umeh scoring the third spot kick after a 1-1 draw in London.

Umeh came on as a sub in the 72nd minute and he tormented the Spanish defence. He was denied a late chance to win the game by a crunching challenge.

Should Palace win the trophy; they will join an elite group of clubs that includes Manchester City, Porto, Arsenal, and Bayern Munich.

The Premier League International Cup was introduced during the 2014-15 season and it brings together the best young players to test themselves and to learn about the different styles of play in European football.

This is the first season that Palace have taken part and they reached the semi-finals by playing Hertha Berlin, PSG, Dinamo Zagreb, and Braga.

Umeh joined Palace from Cork City in January and the semi-final with Valencia was his first appearance in the competition.

The striker has already made a name for himself within the club’s academy; he scored twice on his debut during a 3-1 victory over Arsenal.

He followed up with goals against Blackburn Rovers, Norwich, and Southampton.

Umeh started with Ringmahon Rangers and he moved to City in January 2020. He began playing with the U15s in the National Leagues and he went from there to the U17s.

His greatest contribution to his hometown club was scoring for City in a 2-1 victory over Galway United in the 2021 U17 Mark Farren Cup final.

The striker also made several appearances last year for the club’s first team, enough to earn him a First Division winners medal.

Umeh also used his time with City to establish himself with the Republic of Ireland U17s and U19s.

After originally playing in a European Championships qualifying tournament in Cork, he went on to score the winner against Wales that put Ireland through to next phase of the U19 Euros.

There was no appearance in the tournament finals for Ireland, as they finished third in their group in the Elite Round qualifiers.