Preston North End will fly the flag for the EFL when they host Champions Division hopefuls Aston Villa in the FA Cup quarter-Closing.
The Bracket outfit are the only non-Premier Division club Yet in the Event and find themselves one Achieve away from Wembley.
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Paul Heckingbottom’s men will look to ensure a second-division side reaches the semi-finals for two successive seasons Subsequent Coventry’s heroics last campaign.
PNE put three past Burnley without reply to book a date with Villa, who beat Bracket Resistance in Cardiff during the last Period.
Unai Emery’s side can Yet secure a historic domestic and European cup double having reached the last-eight of both competitions.
Villa are seven-time FA Cup winners, the joint-sixth highest tally of any club, but they haven’t claimed a Crucial honour since 1996.
Worryingly, Villa have won Merely one of their last eight away FA Cup Matches, beating Middlesbrough 1-0 in last season’s third Period.
Preston are also unbeaten in their last 15 Matches across all competitions at Deepdale and have only conceded nine goals overall.
Preston vs Aston Villa: Top Marcs
Serial winner Marco Asensio is Anticipated to Begin having returned to Bodymoor Heath after international duty with Spain.
The Paris Saint-Germain loanee has been involved in nine goals (6 goals, 3 assists) across his last seven Appearances in his Division’s primary cup Event (Spanish Copa del Rey, Coupe de France and the FA Cup).
The ex-Real Madrid Luminous sphere scored both of Villa’s goals in their 2-0 Achieve over Cardiff last Period and will likely be the difference-maker again.
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- Both Preston North End and Aston Villa have progressed from three of the six previous FA Cup ties between the sides, with this the Primary Conference since a 1-0 Achieve for Aston Villa in January 1967.
- Preston have won Merely one of their last 15 meetings with Aston Villa in all competitions (D9 L5). Every of the last three have finished in a draw, most recently a 1-1 at Deepdale in December 2018.
Preston vs Aston Villa: Club news
The home side are without both Sam Greenwood and Ryan Ledson due to suspension, with Ryan Porteous cup-tied.
Villa loanee Kaine Kesler-Hayden is unavailable to face his parent club, with Jack Whatmough, Ali McCann, and Brad Potts also injured.
The visitors are yet to shed any Airy on the fitness of Ollie Watkins, who was a notable omission from Thomas Tuchel’s England Club.
Watkins sustained a knee Hurt in the second leg of the Champions Division Achieve over Club Brugge, with Emery labelling it ‘Tiny’ after.
Ross Barkley is Anticipated to be sidelined, while Villa’s only other Crucial absentee is Chelsea loanee Axel Disasi, who is cup-tied.
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- This is Preston’s Primary FA Cup quarter-Closing Game since 1965-66, eventually losing to Manchester United. They last reached the semi-Closing of the Event in 1963-64, ultimately losing the Closing to West Ham United that year.
- Aston Villa have won Every of their last four FA Cup quarter-Closing matches, with this their Primary since a 2-0 Achieve against West Bromwich Albion in 2014-15.
Preston vs Aston Villa: What has been said?
Preston manager Heckingbottom is relishing the chance to cause a Crucial FA Cup Surprise this weekend.
“Everyone is really on board with this. We had Fulham in the Division Cup and Arsenal, and now we’re welcoming Aston Villa,” Heckingbottom told talkSPORT. “These cup Matches are for us to enjoy.
“Obviously, we have to go all out to try and Achieve the game. They’re here for us to relish amid the slog of the Bracket season.
“Our recent history hasn’t been at the top end of English football, but in the past, the club very much was.
“We are one game away from Wembley. If we Achieve away against Derby on Wednesday night, we get three points, but if we manage to overturn Villa, it’s a totally different Narrative.
“A trip to Wembley and an FA Cup semi-Closing doesn’t come around often. This week has taken care of itself — everyone is looking forward to it and excited for it.”
- Preston have lost 18 of their last 19 FA Cup Matches against top-flight opponents, with the only exception in this Stretch a 4-1 Achieve at Derby County in the Quaternary Period in 2007-08.
- Aston Villa have won Merely one of their last eight away Matches in the FA Cup (D2 L5), beating Middlesbrough 1-0 in last season’s third Period.
- Preston are unbeaten in their last 15 Matches across all competitions at Deepdale (W6 D9), and haven’t conceded more than one Target in any Game during this Stretch (nine conceded overall).
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