Our betting expert has three Preston vs Aston Villa tips for Sunday’s FA Cup quarter-final tie at Deepdale (kick-off, 1.30pm). Scroll down for the analysis behind his selections.
By Luke Seychell
- Preston or draw – Double chance @ 13/8 with bet365
- Under 2.5 goals @ 11/10 with bet365
- Over 4 cards for Preston and Ben Whiteman to be booked @ 7/1 with bet365
Plucky North End can frustrate Villa
Preston may be the lowest-ranked team left in this season’s FA Cup but they will head into their quarter-final tie against Aston Villa with momentum behind them, particularly on home soil at Deepdale.
Paul Heckingbottom’s side are unbeaten in their last 15 matches on their own patch, a run that dates back to early November and includes successes in this competition over Charlton, Wycombe and Burnley.
With just three defeats in their last 16 games, home or away, North End know how to keep things competitive, and with a late play-off charge seeming unlikely in the Championship, all their eggs appear to be firmly in the FA Cup basket.
The same may not be true for Villa, who are in a battle for a top-four finish in the Premier League and have a Champions League quarter-final tie with Paris Saint-Germain on the horizon.
While FA Cup progress will also be a priority for Unai Emery’s side, they are unlikely to find things easy in Lancashire, especially as they have lost nine and won only four of their last 14 away matches across all competitions.
This has the potential to be a cup upset and there is certainly value in siding with Preston to, at the very least, take their illustrious top-flight opponents to extra time.
- Preston vs Aston Villa Tip 1: Preston or draw – Double chance @ 13/8 with bet365
Keeping things tight key for underdogs
If Preston are to progress to a first FA Cup semi-final for 61 years, then they will likely have to keep things tight, something they have been no strangers to doing of late.
Seven of their last 10 matches across all competitions have featured no more than two goals, while three of their previous six games at Deepdale have finished 0-0.
Only four teams have scored fewer goals than Preston in the Championship this season, but at the other end they have been defensively solid, as emphasised by their record of just 15 goals conceded in their 19 league games at Deepdale during 2024-25.
Villa have not exactly been prolific on the road, failing to score more than once in nine of their last 10 domestic away fixtures, and this cup tie could prove something of a war of attrition, with no more than two goals expected across the piece.
- Preston vs Aston Villa Tip 2: Under 2.5 goals @ 11/10 with bet365
Hosts like to get stuck in
Preston are a side that like to get stuck in and the stats back that up, as no team has received more yellow cards (101) or given away more fouls (507) in the Championship this season than Heckingbottom’s side.
North End have also committed more fouls in this season’s FA Cup than any of the other remaining quarter-finalists and given they are likely to have to soak up plenty of pressure against Villa, it would be no surprise to see them pick up at least four cards on Sunday.
Of the most likely candidates to be cautioned, midfielder Ben Whiteman stands out, as his tally of 10 yellows in this season’s Championship is more than any other Preston player.
That total looks particularly high given he missed nearly two months of action with an ankle injury and he has only recently returned, making substitute appearances against Sheffield United, Sunderland and Portsmouth.
Now fully up to speed, and with fellow midfielders Sam Greenwood and Ryan Ledson ruled out through suspension, club captain Whiteman should come back into the starting XI against Villa and he could mark the occasion with a customary yellow card.
- Preston vs Aston Villa tip 3: Over 4 cards for Preston and Ben Whiteman to be booked @ 7/1 with bet365
