When was Preston North End vs Aston Villa?

Aston Villa picked up a dominant 3-0 win over Preston North End in the FA Cup quarterfinal at the Deepdale Stadium on March 30, 2025. After a cagey first half, the Villans exploded in the second half and relied on a Marcus Rashford brace as well as a Jacob Ramsey goal to storm into the 2024/25 FA Cup semifinal.

Unai Emery’s side had a cagey start to the game, struggling against the physicality and intensity of the Championship side. Preston had a penalty call in the second minute after a poor backpass from Lucas Digne got Youri Tielemans in trouble, but the referee waved play on. Emiliano Martinez was harassed by crosses, but did particularly well to hold onto one in the 7th minute.

Marcus Rashford had a free-kick attempt easily saved by David Cornell in the 10th minute, before Ezri Konsa failed to convert a header four minutes later. Mads Frøkjær-Jensen had a speculative effort go wide in the 18th minute, and Digne saw a free kick attempt go off-target three minutes later.

The hosts had a big chance to score in the 29th after a cross left Martinez in a bad position, but Stefan Thordanson put a close-range header off-target. Konsa had another goal-scoring chance go adrift as his header went over the bar in the 38th minute, with the Villans being frustrated in the first half by the Championship side.

However, Unai Emery’s side came all guns blazing after the half-time break and amped up their performance levels by quite a major margin. Rashford had an effort from close range expertly denied by Cornell in the 53rd minute after some slick link-up play with Rogers. The Villans finally got the lead in the 59th minute after a sweeping move saw Rashford score from close range to make it 1-0.

Four minutes later, Aston Villa received a penalty after Morgan Rogers was brought down in the box. Rashford made no mistake converting it to make it 2-0 in the 64th minute.

Rogers saw an effort saved well in the 70th minute, but Cornell couldn’t do anything a minute later when Jacob Ramsey smashed a powerful shot into the back of the net to make it 3-0.

Substitute Ollie Watkins had a few good chances in the late stages, but put an easy header and a powerful shot wide. Jacob Ramsey also missed a chance late on. That didn’t matter, as the Premier League side rolled their way to seal a place at Wembley for the FA Cup semi-finals. Here are Preston North End vs Aston Villa Player Ratings.

Preston North End Player Ratings

Preston North End defenders against Morgan Rogers (Image credit: Aston Villa |X)

GK – David Cornell – 6/10

Cornell was pretty sharp in his goal, making a few nice saves and showcasing especially great reaction to deny Rashford early in the second half. Couldn’t do much for the goals.

RCB – Jordan Storey – 6/10

Storey maintained decent positioning on his side, cutting out several Aston Villa’s attacks with his timely challenges. Lost his composure in the second half.

CB – Lewis Gibson – 5/10

Gibson did a relatively good job helping his side maintain a stubborn shape in the first half. But his positioning for Rashford’s first goal was poor and failed to ensure his side maintained utmost concentration.

LCB – Andrew Hughes – 4.5/10

Hughes came up with a few vital challenges, but was a bit too overly aggressive with his approach. Made an unnecessary challenge to foul Rogers, leading to the penalty.

RWB – Robert Brady – 6.5/10

Brady showcased his defensive skills for the majority of the game, going toe-to-toe with Rashford and winning six duels. His positioning for the first goal was a bit questionable.

CM – Ben Whitemann – 5/10

The 28-year-old struggled to stop Aston Villa’s breakthrough moves through the central channels. Was often in bad positions and got booked for a bad challenge.

CM – Stefan Thoderson – 5.5/10

Wasted a big scoring chance by putting an easy header off-target in the first half. Failed to create much or win many duels in midfield.

CM – Mads Frøkjær-Jensen – 5.5/10

The Danish midfielder worked hard in covering a lot of ground in midfield, closing down the spaces and making things as tough as possible for the Aston Villa players.

LWB – Jayden Meghoma – 7.5/10

The 18-year-old defender was arguably the brightest aspect of his side’s defensive set-up. He was proactive and alert on the left, making three interceptions and three clearances. Made it tough for the visitors to create much on his side.

CF – Will Keane – 4.5/10

Keane won a few decent duels, but failed to get going in the opposition half. Caused very little threat to the defenders.

CF – Emil Jakobsen – 4.5/10

Had a tough outing against the experienced Aston Villa defenders, being unable to get to the end of anything.

SUB – Milutin Osmajic – 5.5/10

Couldn’t make much of an impact in the forward line after coming on.

SUB – Liam Lindsay – 6/10

Ensured his side didn’t concede any late goals after coming on.

SUB – Ched Evans – 5.5/10

Quite ineffective in the attack.

SUB – Theo Carroll – N/R

Had a rather cagey late cameo.

SUB – Theo Mawane – N/R

Came on for the final bits of the game.

Manager – Paul Heckingbottom – 5/10

Heckingbottom did a pretty good job in ensuring that his side frustrated Aston Villa with their physicality and sturdy defensive work in the first half. However, he couldn’t ensure his players maintained their concentration levels. His side’s marking style did their undoing, causing gaps to open up and giving the visitors ample chances to score.

Aston Villa Player Ratings

Jacob Ramsey celebrates for Aston Villa (Image credit: Aston Villa | X)

GK – Emiliano Martinez – 6.5/10

Martinez kept himself strong against the jeering from the crowd and held strong against the aerial approach from the hosts. Made a few crucial clearances.

RB – Matty Cash – 7/10

Cash was an agile figure on the right, doing pretty well to nullify Preston’s threat. He moved the ball forward efficiently and caused trouble with his forward runs.

CB – Ezri Konsa – 6.5/10

Konsa missed a few decent scoring chances in the first half by putting his headers wide. He was, although, composed and reliable with his defensive contribution.

CB – Tyrone Mings – 7/10

Mings held together a really strong defensive shape for his side and did well to neutralize Preston’s bullying tactics. Came up with several key clearances and moved the ball forward nicely.

LB – Lucas Digne – 8/10

Digne had a shaky start to the game, but recovered well. Lit up in the second half, picking out Rashford perfectly for his goal and also grabbing an assist for Ramsey’s goal.

CM – Youri Tielemans – 6/10

Tielemans lost a few duels in the midfield, but did a relatively solid job in keeping his side on top of the game. Moved the ball forward really nicely.

CM – Boubacar Kamara – 6.5/10

Kamara added a lot of steel and physicality to his side’s midfield, ensuring that they neutralized the hosts’ physicality without much trouble. Won back the ball a few times in key areas and moved it forward nicely.

RW – Morgan Rogers – 7.5/10

Rogers was a real menacing figure for Aston Villa, causing a lot of trouble with clever movement and link-up play. He played a nice role in the opening goal and forced a challenge on himself to win the penalty. Came close to scoring too, but had an effort denied in the second half.

AM – Jacob Ramsey – 7.5/10

Ramsey was a real driving figure for the Aston Villa side, moving the ball forward with confidence and showing fearlessness with his approach. Scored a great goal by carrying the ball forward and producing a smashing finish.

LW – Marcus Rashford – 8.5/10

Rashford had a quiet first half, seeing some harmless efforts go wide. But he exploded into life in the second half, initially having an attempt saved. Got in the right place to score his first Aston Villa goal and made no mistake converting the penalty. Created a few nice chances and tormented the defenders with his movement.

CF – Marco Asensio – 6.5/10

Asensio didn’t come close to scoring for his side, but worked as an essential link-up outlet. He helped build up some nice attacks and disrupted the opposition backline with his positioning.

SUB – Donyell Malen – 5.5/10

Couldn’t get to the end of any chances.

SUB – Amadou Onana – 6/10

Added more physicality and driving force to his side.

SUB – John McGinn – 6/10

Helped add more energy to his side’s midfield.

SUB – Ollie Watkins – 5/10

Wasted a big chance to score seconds after coming on. Then put a shot wide from close range soon after.

SUB – Andres Garcia – N/R

Came on for the final bits to ensure his side got the clean sheet.

Manager – Unai Emery –

The Spanish manager fielded a pretty perfect starting XI, which took some time to explode. He did a great job in ensuring they were patient with their approach, and his halftime team talk was inspiring, resulting in the Villans producing a clinical second-half display to get the job done.