Football writer Dan Edwards analyses Sunday's FA Cup quarter-final ties.
Preston North End 0-3 Aston Villa
Rashford brace sends Villa to Wembley for Palace face-off
Marcus Rashford scored his first goals for Aston Villa as they overcame a subpar first half to eventually outclass Championship side Preston North End.
Ollie Watkins started on the bench for the visitors, having not been included in Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad owing to a minor knee injury, and this meant a start at centre-forward for Rashford.
The absence of a natural focal point was evident in the first half for Villa, with their 72 per cent possession at the break resulting in zero shots from open play.
In fact, it was Preston who had the biggest chance to take the lead during the opening 45 minutes, with Stefan Thordarson heading wide despite Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez out of the picture, having just dived to palm away a dangerous inswinging cross from Robbie Brady.
Unai Emery will have been frustrated with his team’s failure to truly test Preston goalkeeper David Cornell during that first half – he was making only his second start of the season in all competitions due to the injury of nominal No 1 Freddie Woodman during the international break – and Emery had every reason to alter the attacking shape at half-time.
The Spaniard instead showcased his knockout competition pedigree and patiently elected to give his attackers more time to find a breakthrough, and that they did, course-correcting with three goals in the space of 12 minutes to suppress the party atmosphere from the home fans at Deepdale, who were enjoying a first FA Cup quarter-final since 1966.
The first of those three goals was Rashford’s first in an Aston Villa shirt, calmly guiding a Lucas Digne pass into the back of the net from near the penalty spot.
Rashford made use of that penalty spot only minutes later, doubling his Villa tally after Morgan Rogers was fouled in the penalty area, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.
The final goal came from Jacob Ramsey, who surged through midfield after receiving a Digne pass on the spin, holding off a combative Jordan Storey before finishing powerfully to the bottom left of the goal from just inside the box.
Villa have now won five consecutive matches in all competitions for the second time this season and look to be finding form at the perfect time, with a huge April to come.
After two matches against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League, they will face Crystal Palace in the semi-final of the FA Cup at the end of the month.
See: Aston Villa report
Man City subs help to reach seventh consecutive FA Cup semi-final
Manchester City came from behind to eliminate AFC Bournemouth with a dazzling second-half performance, aided by decisive involvements from substitute pair Nico O’Reilly and Omar Marmoush, reaching the FA Cup semi-finals for a record seventh season in a row.
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It was a familiar start for Man City, with missed opportunities to open the scoring followed in close proximity by a concession at the other end.
This time Erling Haaland was the culprit, missing the target twice from point-blank range either side of a penalty that was saved comfortably by Kepa Arrizabalaga, his third missed penalty from his last six attempts, having converted 11 in a row for City prior, including shootouts.
Like clockwork, Bournemouth opened the scoring within five minutes of Haaland’s trio of missed chances.
Justin Kluivert looked to have squeezed in from a tight angle after being located brilliantly by David Brooks at the far post, but Evanilson made absolutely sure, pushing the ball over the line from point blank range under intense pressure from Abdukodir Khusanov.
It was the 21st time that City have conceded first in all competitions this season, the fourth-most of any Premier League side.
Haaland has been one player that City can rely on for consistency in performance this season, often unaffected by the anarchy that has unfolded around him.
This time the Norwegian made up for his poor start by levelling proceedings just four minutes into the second half, after having the ball laid on a plate from substitute O’Reilly.
It was Haaland’s 30th goal of the season, making him the first player to score 30+ goals in all competitions in each of his first three seasons while playing for Premier League clubs since Ruud van Nistelrooy for Manchester United from 2001/02 to 2003/04.
City then took the lead in fortuitous fashion just after the hour mark.
With Haaland substituted after failing to shake off a knock, he was replaced by Marmoush, and it was the Egyptian who combined with fellow substitute O’Reilly minutes later before firing under Kepa and into the back of the net.
Bournemouth never recovered from the earlier equaliser and their first-half spark fizzled out completely, failing to record a single attempt at goal after the break.
City showcased great keep-ball antics late on with instances reminiscent of the game management that has won them so many trophies in recent years.
Bournemouth’s season has faltered somewhat – their hopes of a first ever major trophy ended with defeat here; they are now winless in six matches and have slipped to 10th in the Premier League table.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
29 | +14 | 54 |
| 4 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
29 | +16 | 49 |
| 5 |
Man City
MCI
|
29 | +15 | 48 |
| 6 |
Newcastle
NEW
|
28 | +9 | 47 |
| 7 |
Brighton
BHA
|
29 | +6 | 47 |
| 8 |
Fulham
FUL
|
29 | +5 | 45 |
| 9 |
Aston Villa
AVL
|
29 | -4 | 45 |
| 10 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
29 | +12 | 44 |
See: Bournemouth report | Man City report
When are the semi-finals and which Premier League fixtures are now postponed?
The FA Cup semi-finals will take place at Wembley Stadium on the weekend of 26-27 April, with Nottingham Forest v Manchester City and Aston Villa v Crystal Palace.
As these matches will occur during the same weekend as Matchweek 34 of the Premier League, the following matches will be moved to new dates:
Nottingham Forest v Brentford
Arsenal v Crystal Palace
Manchester City v Aston Villa