Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa

Selhurst Park is the venue as Crystal Palace and Aston Villa battle it out for a place in the FA Cup final. 

Keen to extinguish the memory of a 2-0 defeat to Chelsea in the 2021/22 semi-final, Crystal Palace head into their second FA Cup last-four tie in four seasons on the back of a morale-boosting 2-2 draw at Arsenal in midweek Premier League action. However, Oliver Glasner’s men have stuttered since their quarter-final triumph against Fulham, taking just one win from six matches in all competitions (D3, L2). Against this backdrop, they’ve avoided defeat in three of their last four encounters against Villa (W3, D1), including a thumping 4-1 league win at this stadium in February. Replicating that success would see Palace secure only their third-ever appearance in the FA Cup final and, consequently, a chance to lift the trophy for the first time. 

On the other hand, Aston Villa dispatched two top-flight rivals, Tottenham and West Ham, en route to the semi-finals. Furthermore, Unai Emery’s charges comfortably overcame Cardiff and Preston without conceding to set up this tie and will now aim to reach the grand final for the first time since 2014/15. However, Villa’s morale took a hit in midweek Premier League action as they slumped to a 2-1 loss at Manchester City, relinquishing an impressive five-game winning league streak. The seven-time FA Cup winners must bounce back swiftly against a Palace side they last defeated in September 2023, perhaps drawing confidence from six wins from their eight competitive away games since the start of March (L2).