Crystal Palace and Aston Villa meet at Wembley on Saturday evening in a highly-anticipated FA Cup semi-final, with both sides eyeing a rare shot at silverware and a place in next month’s final against either Man City or Nottingham Forest, who play on Sunday. For Palace, the chance to reach only their third FA Cup final in club history is on the line, while Villa seek to end a 68-year wait for this trophy and claim their first major honour since 1996, when they won the League Cup.
Aston Villa arrive as marginal favourites, buoyed by a strong Premier League campaign and a run of 10 wins in their last 12 matches across all competitions. Unai Emery’s side, currently seventh in the league, have seen off West Ham, Tottenham, Cardiff, and Preston to reach their first FA Cup semi-final in a decade. Their squad is in excellent health, with no major injury concerns, and January signings Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio have given Villa’s attack fresh impetus.
Crystal Palace, meanwhile, have struggled for league form in recent weeks, going four games without a win, but have shown resilience with back-to-back draws against Bournemouth and Arsenal. Oliver Glasner’s men have already beaten Villa twice this season-most notably a 4-1 rout in February-and are unbeaten in their last four meetings with Villa, scoring 13 goals in the process. Palace’s only absentees are long-term injuries Cheick Doucouré and Chadi Riad, while Chris Richards returns from suspension and Ben Chilwell is fit again.
History in the FA Cup favours Villa, who have eliminated Palace in all three previous ties, but recent head-to-head form is firmly with the Eagles. With both sides boasting attacking quality and a place in the final at stake, a high-scoring, open contest is expected. Wembley is set for a dramatic evening as two ambitious sides look to seize a rare opportunity for glory. For one set of fans it will be a memorable day out, for the other it will be one to forget.
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