Featured Image Credit: BBC
Topics: Aston Villa, Preston North End, FA Cup, Football
Ben McCrum
Aston Villa fans have spoken out on social media, making a bold claim about the chaotic start to their FA Cup quarter-final match against Championship side Preston North End.
After Saturday saw Crystal Palace and Nottingham Forest book their places at Wembley Stadium for the FA Cup semi-finals, all eyes turned to Sunday's matches to see who else would progress to the penultimate round.
Preston North End, the only side outside of the Premier League still in the competition, host Aston Villa in the first of Sunday's matches, with Manchester City travelling to the Vitality Stadium to face Bournemouth later in the day.
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But first match of the day at the Deepdale has already been hit with massive controversy, leading to some Villa fans making a bold claim about their opponents.
As Sunday's early FA Cup match between Preston North End and Villa kicked off, the match was immediately swarmed with blue and white balloons, representing the club colours of the home side.
Initially, fans found the incident funny, but these feelings quickly turned to anger for Villa fans who felt that the balloons were stopping their side from taking an early lead in the match.
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Reacting to the balloons on X, one Villa fan suggested: "Underdog tactic; throw tons of balloons onto the pitch. Preston fans, I'm looking at you!"
Another frustrated fan asked: "Anyone fancy getting those balloons off the pitch?"
While one wrote: "Why can’t we stop the game for 30 seconds and pop all these balloons. Ridiculous idea."
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And another fan joked: "Vintage FA Cup. Preston and Villa playing the Balloon Classico."
Heading into half-time, the home fans will no doubt be happy as Preston has held Unai Emery's side to a 0-0 draw in the opening 45 minutes, while enjoying some big chances of their own.
The match could yet go either way, and whichever team progresses won't have to wait long to discover who they will face in the semi-finals at Wembley, as the draw for the penultimate round will take place just moments after full-time at Deepdale.