Marcus Rashford’s brace fired Aston Villa to a first FA Cup semi-final appearance in a decade with a 3-0 win at Preston.
Rashford fired Villa ahead from a 58th-minute low cross by Lucas Digne, before he netted his second goal from the penalty spot in the 63rd minute after Morgan Rogers had been fouled by Andrew Hughes.
Jacob Ramsey consolidated Villa’s victory with a 71st-minute strike to book their semi-final spot for the first time since they finished runner-up in 2014-15 season.
Villa now will face Crystal Palace in the semi-finals after the draw was held upon the conclusion of the match at Deepdale.
Prior to the draw, Rashford spoke to BBC One in which he warned fans not to get too carried away given that Villa are not only chasing the FA Cup but also the Champions League title plus a top-four Premier League finish.
“We have to take it one game at a time and give it 100% on the pitch and see where it takes us. We’re very ambitious.”
Despite missing several regulars due to injuries, Preston were lucky to not find themselves on the backfoot after a second-minute foul from Will Keane on Youri Tielemans, which led to Villa’s penalty appeals being snubbed by referee – Chris Kavanagh.
Villa continued to dominate much of the first half but often lacked a clear-cut end product aside from a 14th minute header from Ezri Konsa, which flew wide of the left-corner from a right-sided corner-kick.
Preston though managed to carve out their own opportunity to break the deadlock on the half-hour mark as Robbie Brady’s cross was flapped away by Emiliano Martinez, with the ball subsequently nodded back into the middle for Stefan Thordarson who only managed to head wide.
Unai Emery’s Villains had encountered similar difficulty against Preston’s fellow Championship rival, Cardiff in the fifth round, but were soon able to find their spark early in the second half as Rashford forced a 53rd-minute save by David Cornell.
Villa’s persistence eventually paid off five minutes later as a quick attacking move out to the left allowed Digne to play a low cross to Rashford, which the England forward calmly diverted past Cornell into the bottom-right corner to gift the visitors a deserved lead.
Jacob Ramsey then saw a shot cleared off the line on the hour-mark but Preston’s hopes were dealt a further blow barely a minute later, after Hughes fouled Rogers who had played an one-two move into the box from the right.
Rashford duly stepped up and netted Villa’s second goal with a penalty towards the bottom-right corner to put them on course for a first semi-final appearance in a decade.
Villa further confirmed their place in the final four through Ramsey’s calmly-composed 71st minute strike, having been allowed to run into the box unchallenged from Digne’s free-kick.
Substitute, Ollie Watkins missed a chance to further wrap up Villa’s victory after he fired wide in the 82nd minute, just a minute after he replaced Rashford but the Villains eventually cruised through to the semi-finals with a clean sheet.
What’s Next?
Preston must switch their focus to the Championship with a trip to relegation-battling Derby at 19:45pm BST on Wednesday 2 April.
Villa now turn their attention to a critical Premier League visit to Brighton on that same evening as both teams continue their chase for Champions League qualification.
Teams
Preston: David Cornell, Jordan Storey, Lewis Gibson, Andrew Hughes, Robbie Brady, Stefan Thordarson (Mawene 83′), Ben Whiteman, Mads Frokjaer-Jensen (Carroll 83′), Jayden Meghoma (Lindsay 77′), Will Keane (Osmajic 64′), Emil Riis Jakobsen (Evans 77′)
Substitutes: Li-Bau Stowell, Liam Lindsay, Patrick Bauer, Kacper Pasiek, Troy Tarry, Theo Carroll, Theo Mawene, Ched Evans, Milutin Osmajic
Aston Villa: Emiliano Martinez, Matty Cash (Garcia 81′), Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Lucas Digne, Youri Tielemans (McGinn 73′), Boubacar Kamara, Marco Asensio (Onan 74′), Morgan Rogers (Malen 73′), Jacob Ramsey, Marcus Rashford (Watkins 81′)
Substitutes: Robin Olsen, Lamare Bogarde, Ian Maatsen, Andres Garcia, Pau Torres, Amadou Onana, Donyell Malen, Ollie Watkins, John McGinn
Referee – Chris Kavanagh