Rashford Bags Brac to Sew Zlikovci on Wembley

Aston Villa has booked its place in the semi -finals of Fa Cup for the first time in a decade with a 3-0 victory over Preston in Deepdale.

Marcus Rashford hit twice before Jacob Ramsey added a third to round up a comfortable afternoon for the Unai Emery side.

The first half was a narrow affair, and Villa dominated the possession, but struggled to throw out a clear chance. Preston, undefeated in the last 15 home games in all competitions, pressed well to disrupt the rhythm of visitors’ attackers.

The best chance for the opening period fell on Preston, because Mads Fokjaer-Jensen directed the ball back over the goal to Stefan Thordarson, who failed to direct the header on the target.

The biggest threat of the villa was passed by Lucas Digil, whose delivery on the left caused problems, although Rashford and Company failed to use.

The game opened after a re -launch, and Villa quickly took control. The breakthrough arrived in the 58th minute when Digne found the space on the left and handed the accurate cross to Rashford, who for his first goal rejected home since joining the club on loan.

Just minutes later, Villa was awarded a penalty after Morgan Rogers caught Andrew Hughes in the box. Rashford stepped and sent his shot, sending Preston’s goalkeeper Dai Cornell in the wrong way to double the advantage of the villa.

See you there, Villans 🫡 pic.twitter.com/jmfudv6msg

– Aston Villa (@Avfcofficial) March 30, 2025

With a pleasant leadership, Villa held its dominance and added further shine with the score in the 71st minute. Ramsey, who was a lively presence throughout the match, collected the insertion, entered the box and ended up making the game out of doubt.

Preston is a little left to offer in response, and Villa continued to push the fourth goal, and replacing Ollie Watkins in fast inheritance lacked two golden capabilities. In the last minutes he saw a burdensome replacement, but the outcome was already decided while Villa saw the match comfortably.

Statistically speaking, the bay in the class was obvious. Villa registered the expected goals (xg) of 3.54 compared to Preston’s 0.47. Rashford’s return to the scoring formation was the main positive for the villa, while Digne’s creativity on the left showed a key role in breaking Preston’s defense.

The result sends a villa into their first semi -final FA Cup since 2015, where they celebrated Liverpool famous before they lost to Arsenal in the finals. In the meantime, Preston will turn their attention to the championship action while faced with Derby’s district in the middle of the week