3:48PM Not sure about that. Even an on-song Rashford does not walk straight into the Real Madrid starting XI, for example, but anyway…
Thanks for reading. One more FA Cup quarter-final to go: Bournemouth v Manchester City. Winner plays Nottingham Forest. Kieran Crichard is covering the match for Telegraph Sport.
3:43PM When Marcus is playing well, like he did in the second half, when you’re giving him what he needs – which is a bit of freedom and chances to score goals, but he’s making the runs fine, he can start in any team in world football. That’s how good Marcus is.
3:40PM BBC pundits are purring about Marcus Rashford’s penalty technique. He waited for the moment Cornell’s leg moved and went to the left side, as he dived right.
“With the players stuttering [their run-up] and keeping an eye on you, they are not going for the bottom corner,” Joe Hart explains. “That’s tame, that Rashford penalty, but he managed to get rid of the goalkeeper. It’s such a good feeling to do that.”
3:32PM Nottingham Forest v Bournemouth or Manchester City
Crystal Palace v Aston Villa.
The ties are to be played April 26 and April 27.
As Mark Chapman points out on the Beeb, you could make a case for any of the five left in the competition to go all the way.
3:31PM The other tie sees the lowest-ranked side left in the competition, Crystal Palace, facing Preston vanquishers Aston Villa.
3:30PM A mouthwatering clash between teams separated by six points in the Premier League.
3:29PM Curious decision to do it hours before the last quarter-final is decided, but hey ho.
It is BBC pundit Joe Hart doing the honours.
The numbers for the draw are:1 Crystal Palace2 Aston Villa3 Bournemouth or Manchester City
4 Nottingham Forest
3:27PM 1999 – Aston Villa’s 3-0 win over Preston is their biggest winning margin in an FA Cup game since January 1999, when they beat Hull City 3-0. Villa have reached their first FA Cup semi-final since 2015. Cruise. pic.twitter.com/yK4w0Ys1Ao
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 30, 2025
3:26PM “It’s a great feeling [to score two goals]. I feel like I’ve been playing better football since I’ve been here. It’s nice for a forward to get goals and hopefully it continues.
“I think we’re a very ambitious team, we want to win and get as far as we can in all competitions and also get back to the top four as well.”
Asked by the BBC how far he is from his best form, he answered: “Step by step, I think I can still get fitter and I missed a lot of football before joining up with them. At the moment, my football feels good, I’m injury-free and just enjoying my football.”
3:22PM An impressive spell in the middle of the second half saw Villa outclass Preston, who defended determinedly in the first half. Two goals in quick succession took all the sting out of the game
The three Rs – Ramsey, Rashford and Rogers – were full of running and they still have the energy to go over to the travelling fans and applaud them.
What a time to be an Aston Villa fan. Thousands will be travelling to Paris for the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final on April 9.
3:19PM Villa are the only team left in the Premier League who can realistically do a “double” this season. They have Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarters and then one of Arsenal or Real Madrid. Of course, Arsenal can still mathematically win the Premier League but it looks unlikely.
3:18PM Two minutes of stoppage time to be played. Marcus Rashford gets awarded the player of the match. He shone after a frustrating first half and was unflappable from the spot, despite a few distraction tactics from Preston goalkeeper Cornell.
3:17PM Over 70% possession for the Premier League side and it looks that figure will slide up a few points as they hold onto the ball.
Nearly four, as McGinn receives a quick throw in on the box, turns and flicks the ball to Ramsay. His shot pings off a Preston leg and misses the far post by centimetres.
3:13PM Aston Villa are going to Wembley, joining Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest. The draw for the semi-finals is right after this match, ahead of the Bournemouth v Manchester City fourth and final quarter-final.
I’ll be following it live here, so stay put.
3:11PM Another chance squandered for Watkins. Kamara finds him, he rolls it past the committed, hapless Preston defender and charges goalwards. His shot is wide of both Cornell and the post.
Some changes for Preston North End in the dying minutes of their biggest game for years:
T. Carroll → Frokjaker-Jensen
Mawene → Thordarson
3:09PM Watkins nearly scores with his first touch. Digne whips in the free kick from the sideline and the fresh-legged attacker nods it wide of the post.
Villa are full of confidence and there may be a fourth goal coming.
3:08PM As Villa keep the ball smartly in defence, the visiting fans are cheering “ole” for every touch. Ramsey gets fouled in the middle.
More subsitutions from Unai Emery. No chance of a hat-trick for the departing Rashford, but he is the star man today.
A. Garcia → Cash
Watkins → Rashford
3:06PM Among a few changes for the home side, controversial attacker Ched Evans takes to the field. Meghoma, who was full of running in the first half, goes off.
C. Evans → Riis Jakobsen
Lindsay → Meghoma
3:03PM In the ascendancy, Aston Villa ring in the changes. It is a chance to rest some legs ahead of a pivotal part of their season.
McGinn → Tielemans
Malen → Rogers
Onana → Asensio
3:00PM Preston North End 0 Aston Villa 3 (Ramsey) Jacob Ramsey makes it three for Aston Villa with the best goal of the afternoon.
Digne finds him 45 yards out, he swivels past Storey and accelerates. Ramsey shrugs off his challenge and fires it through the hands of Cornell. Villa are turning on the style.
2:58PM A fine through ball from Rashford finds Morgan Rogers onside. But Cornell scampers out of his goal, narrows the angle and smothers his shot.
The Welsh goalkeeper has acquitted himself well, with little he could do about either goal.
2:54PM Just as Preston looked a little more enterprising, Aston Villa capitalised on a mistake, slipped through the gears, made the most of a little more space and ruthlessly punished their Championship opponents. Now they just have to manage the game and, ideally, keep a clean sheet.
The away fans are in full song. Barring a shock turnaround, to quote their chant, they are going to Wembley.
Preston sub: Osmajic → Keane
2:51PM Preston North End 0 Aston Villa 2 (Rashford) That’s two in four minutes for Marcus Rashford and Aston Villa. Time seemed to slow to a crawl during his tiptoeing penalty run-up. He waited for Dai Cornell to dive right and rolled the ball into the bottom right corner.
Aston Villa have a foot in the semi-final.
2:49PM How did they miss that? As Rashford danced past players on the byline, Ramsey missed the ball completely, Rogers stabs it goalwards at point-blank range and Meghoma blocks the shot on the line.
But in the next attack, Hughes stands on Rogers’ foot on the edge of the penalty box and gives away a clumsy foul. It’s a penalty! Marcus Rashford has his hands on the ball…
2:47PM Preston North End 0 Aston Villa 1 (Rashford) Villa broke at speed, with Asensio finding Ramsey. Digne gets the ball and exploits acres of space on the left. The France international played it low and square to Marcus Rashford, who sidefoots past Cornell into the bottom corner.
A welcome first goal for Villa.
2:44PM A drop ball compromise 30 yards out: Rashford was fouled near the edge of the box, but the referee had failed to stop play for a head injury to Whiteman. The home side hassle Villa and clear their lines.
How Marcus Rashford would like to score his first goal in Villa colours, two months since joining on loan.
2:41PM Villa break away three on three at pace. Rogers plays in Rashford, who does not connect cleanly the first time as Gibson hassles him. The second time, it scuffs off Cornell’s leg and the Welsh goalkeeper dives on it.
A more clinical finish and that would have been the opener.
2:36PM Morgan Rogers goes down under a tiny push from Brady as a cross sails over his head. He would have struggled to keep that in. As he feigns injury, the Preston faithful pelt him with rolled-up black paper balls. Now that’s the real magic of the cup.
2:33PM No substitutions at half-time. No goals yet and only one shot on target. The next 45 minutes are bound to be more enterprising. Keep those comments coming in.
Youri Tielemans kicks off for Villa, shooting from left to right. Preston will look to nick a goal, but surely the Premier League side can conjure better opportunities, given their pedigree.
2:21PM This could be a long afternoon. There was not much excitement in the first half, with Thordarson’s header wide the most exciting moment for Preston. The hosts have defended well.
2:20PM Preston North End have had a couple of better chances against the run of play, doggedly pressing and frustrating them. They have been a little vulnerable at times when Villa play through them; there is a feeling that the away team will get a gilt-edged opportunity in this game with their pacy attackers.
Neither goalkeeper has had to make a real save yet. Nevertheless, so far, so good for Paul Heckingbottom’s men. They will want to drag Villa into a dogfight.
2:17PM A Delap-esque long throw from Jakobsen has Villa playing head tennis to clear. Keane and Konsa are ballroom dancing on the edge of the area and the foul goes the Premier League team’s way.
Ezri Konsa is down after Will Keane catches his right ankle, but that won’t be enough for a second yellow card.
And that’s half-time, no stoppage time in a breathless half. Is that boos ringing out from the away end?
2:14PM Asensio sends a low ball across but it is cleared again. Preston’s players are all-action, sliding and blocking in midfield, with Meghoma and Frokjaer-Jensen standing out.
Lots of possession and pace, not much to show for it yet for Aston Villa. Their fans may be getting impatient.
The players too: Morgan Rogers sends a through ball to nobody as Cash does not carry on his run for it and exchanges a few frustrated words with his teammate.
2:09PM Another corner as Brady puts his body on the line, blocking a Digne cross. I make that seven. Precious little to show for it, with Cornell not tested in goal yet.
Rashford swings it in and, moving backwards, Konsa cannot twist his body to meet the ball with any accuracy, ballooning the header high and wide.
2:06PM Frokjaer-Jensen reads a Ramsey pass and Preston have numbers in attack. Brady whips in another sumptuous, curving ball, but Tyrone Mings gets his head to it and clears the danger. The Irish veteran has probably been the home side’s best player so far.
2:04PM A searching low ball in from Cash has Hughes at full-stretch to give the corner away. Rashford had the goal at his mercy without that intervention.A headed clearance away and then a Cornell punch away yields two more corners.
Brady gets his noggin on it and clears the third one.
2:02PM Preston go close with their first meaningful passage of play. Brady cuts in and clips a ball in on the left. Martinez dives to claw it away, straight onto the head of Frojkaer-Jensen. He flicks onto the onrushing Þórðarson, who heads it wide of the goal from the penalty spot.
Had to do better there.
1:59PM A lofted ball cross-field to Jayden Meghoma sees a brief, bright spell for Preston. After breaking past Kamara, Matty Cash gets his body in the way and shepherds the ball out for a goal kick.
However, as Villa turn defence into attack, Will Keane trips Tielemans in midfield and receives the game’s first yellow card.
1:56PM Aston Villa have had 74% possession, stroking the ball from midfield, back to Martinez and forward. When Preston win the ball back, they struggle to keep it. Case in point is Robbie Brady missing his teammate in midfield after a turnover.
Only two balloons left in the Preston half, by the way. Far less chance of a farcical Darren Bent moment.
1:53PM Jinking and jiving, Jacob Ramsey is felled 25 yards out. Lucas Digne steps up, swings his left boot at it and the ball flies over the bar.
1:51PM Stefán Teitur Þórðarson lashes a daisy-cutter wide from 35 yards out. Preston will have to do a lot better than that.
At the other end, Morgan Rogers runs at Hughes, cutting in and out, but the left-back gets a foot in and snatches the ball as the England international carves into the box.
1:50PM Both teams are competing against the balloons. I walked under a tifo to get to the press seats while blue and white balloons were released. Some are still swirling around on the pitch. We’ve had a Darren Bent moment already, albeit not in a dangerous position
1:48PM The dozen or so balloons in the Preston half are blowing around, causing a little distraction – a half Preston are struggling to get out of as Villa gain momentum.
Home fans appeal vocierfously for a free-kick as Jayden Meghoma goes down, under a little duress from Asensio, as he seeks a pass. Chris Kavanagh does not flinch.
1:45PM Marcus Rashford is looking lively in the game’s early throes. He wins a corner as his cross on the right is blocked by Andrew Hughes.
The ball gets cleared at the front post, but comes back in with interest from Asensio. Konsa in the middle rises but cannot get a head on it and it flashes just past the far post.
1:43PM I’d put that early penalty shout in the category of “seen them given”. Will Keane was looking for the penalty when he went over Youri Tielemans’ challenge but there was definitely contact between the pair.
Tielemans did well to make it clear with his body language that he was not attempting a tackle. John Brooks, who has been at the centre of VAR controversy in the past, is one of the video-assistant referees at Deepdale.
1:41PM Rashford gives Dai Cornell a first save of the game, sending a free-kick into his arms from 30 yards out. That will help the confidence.
However, Preston are laying off the Villa midfield and giving them room to run. There could be trouble ahead if that continues.
1:39PM Villa’s first coherent move ends with Lucas Digne booting a ball harmlessly over the bar with an attempted cross.
A few minutes later, he links up better on the left with Ramsey, but the Preston defence get rid of the low ball. With a foul in the process, they have a breather to clear their lines.
1:34PM The home crowd roars as Will Keane goes down in the box under pressure from Youri Tielemans as he pursues a stray pass. Nothing doing from the referee or VAR. Sloppy passing play from Villa, but Keane went to ground very easily.
1:33PM Preston shoot left to right in white shirt and black shorts, with Aston Villa in their familiar claret, blue shirt and white shorts.
There are a fair few white balloons drifting around Dai Cornell’s penalty area. Hopefully that will not prove disastrously confusing when the ball comes.
1:31PM The Preston fans in the home end are making a din and waving white flags, an arresting sight for their XI as they trot out onto the pitch. They go through the line-ups and quick, perfunctory hand dabs.
As the teams change ends after the coin toss, Emi Martinez shares a word with Dai Cornell. A World Cup winner and a journeyman goalkeeper at opposite ends.
Kick-off is imminent.
1:26PM Preston North End have eight first team players missing from injury, illness or suspension, including goalkeeper Freddie Woodman.
34-year-old former Wales under-21 goalkeeper Dai Cornell starts only his third match this season. He will be a busy man and will need to play at his best. He has a chance to become a Preston hero.
“Freddie is out for the season now. It’s a big blow for us, but a great opportunity for Dai,” Preston manager Paul Heckingbottom told the BBC. “He’s been training like a demon and been great for us when he’s been called upon.”
1:23PM A big three weeks coming up for Aston Villa, starting today. Manager Unai Emery to the BBC:
“It’s important after the international break, how we can perform more or less like the last matches. It’s a key moment for us, a very good opportunity. The two years I’m here, it’s the first time I have this opportunity [in the cup.]”
1:10PM Unai Emery has only taken one team to Wembley – and that was in the Premier League. It was when Tottenham were tenants there when their stadium was being built. On-form Villa should have a clear path to the FA Cup semi-final but Preston have not lost in 15 matches at Deepdale
Marcus Rashford is starting for Aston Villa as they bid to reach Wembley for the first time since 2020. From Unai Emery’s teamsheet, it looks like Rashford will start up front, as Ollie Watkins is on the bench.
1:08PM Preston stalwart Emil Riis Jakobsen is their top scorer, with ten goals this season, and the 6ft 3in Dane will offer plenty of aerial problems to the Villa defence.
Will Keane was a team-mate of Marcus Rashford at Manchester United; now they go up against one another at Deepdale. Injury stalled his rise at Old Trafford, but he has shown his sound technical ability down the road. The attacking midfielder scored in Preston’s win over Burnley in the last round and would no doubt love another here.
1:02PM A decade ago, Evans was the footballing rapist freed from jail. Today, he could have an impact on Preston North End’s most seismic match in years.
Evans was cleared of raping a 19-year-old woman in 2016, but his public image has been through the wringer. He has overcome several debilitating physical problems and won over an initially doubtful Deepdale faithful, ending his first season as the club’s leading goal-scorer.
Tom Morgan charts the 36-year-old’s journey from rape trial to the big, BBC-broadcast match this afternoon.
12:52PM Preston North End (5-3-2): Cornell; Meghoma, Gibson, Hughes, Storey, Brady; Whiteman, Frokjaer, Thordarson; Keane, Riis.
Substitutes: Stowell (g), Lindsay, Evans, Bauer, Osmajic, Mawene, Pasiek, Tarry, Carroll.
Aston Villa (4-2-3-1): Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Digne; Tielemans, Kamara; Rogers, Asensio, Ramsey; Rashford
Substitutes: Olsen (g); McGinn, Watkins, Pau Torres, Garcia, Malen, Maatsen, Onana, Bogarde
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Lancashire)
12:49PM Going from non-league football to being capped by England is quite a story already, but Tyrone Mings has added some more chapters to his after overcoming a career-threatening knee injury.
Talking candidly to our own Matt Law, he reflected on his darkest times during the 14-month rehabilitation period. At times, the 32-year-old considered retirement and could barely walk up the stairs.
“I’m not one for self-praise, but the level that I’ve played at since I’ve come back is up there with one of my greatest career achievements because of how bad of a physical state I was in,” Mings said. “And I’m still nowhere near my best.”
Mings starts at centre-back this afternoon for Villa.
12:34PM Marcus Rashford seemingly leading the line up top for Villa. Ollie Watkins and John McGinn start on the bench.
12:30PM Dai Cornell replaces Freddie Woodman in goal, missing out through injury. Divisive figure Ched Evans could be an impact substitute off the bench.
12:24PM It could be a last hurrah for the romantics in this old competition today. Preston North End are the last Football League team remaining in the competition, in the quarter-finals for the first time since 1966.
So, can Unai Emery’s Aston Villa do it on a windy Sunday afternoon in Preston? They ought to have too much penetration and quality to outdo their dogged opponents. A surprise exclusion from the England squad, Ollie Watkins is in flying form as is Marco Asensio, who has scored seven goals in his last seven games.
Villa still have interests in three competitions, with a Champions League quarter-final first leg against Paris Saint-Germain on April 9 and a European place to pursue. After a stop-start campaign, they are currently positioned ninth in the table.
The home side, fourteenth in the Championship, progressed by beating Burnley 3-0 in the last round. Despite poor league form, with one win in the last seven, they have proved a tough nut to crack at Deepdale season-long, having not lost at home since early November.
However, Paul Heckingbottom’s side will seek to progress with absentees galore. Influential striker Milutin Osmajic ought to be back from a hip issue, but Ryan Porteous is cup-tied and Ali McCann is crocked by a calf strain. Brad Potts is also in the proverbial infirmary. Sam Greenwood and Ryan Ledson are both suspended.
Both teams have pedigree in this competition from way back when: Aston Villa have seven FA Cup titles, but have not won the competition since 1957. For the home team from Lancashire, you have to go back to 1938 for their second and most recent success.
Kick-off is at 1.30pm, stay tuned for the line-ups shortly.
Oh, and the draw for the FA Cup semi-finals takes place after the match. Let’s see which side will join Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest in the hat.
