It is the first FA Cup meeting between the two sides since 2010, when Villa required a replay to knock the south London club out following a 2-2 draw in the original match at Selhurst Park. John Carew’s brace of penalties made the difference for Villa that day, but the onus will be on Ollie Watkins to send the Villans to a first FA Cup final since 2015, when they were beaten 0-4 by Arsenal.
Watkins said after Villa’s win over Newcastle that he had been ‘fuming’ to be left out of Unai Emery’s starting line-up for both legs of their Champions League loss to Paris Saint-Germain, prompting rumours to swirl as to whether he would leave the club this summer. Should he move for the exit, he will want to cap his four-year stint at Villa Park with some silverware.
Palace enter the match as underdogs, sitting 12 points behind Villa in the Premier League, but will not roll over at Wembley. Ebere Eze is in the form of his career, scoring a classy goal against Arsenal at the Emirates on Wednesday night as Palace battled to a 2-2 draw.
That result will have primed Palace’s momentum ahead of their date with destiny at Wembley, a first appearance at the stadium since 2022, though their opponents will enjoy an extra 24 hours of recovery, last playing on Tuesday.
Date, kick-off time and venue
Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa is scheduled for a 5:15pm BST kick-off on Saturday, April 26, 2025.
The match will take place at Wembley Stadium.
Where to watch Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa
TV channel: In the UK, the game will be televised live FREE on BBC One.
Live stream: You can also catch the contest live online on BBC iPlayer.
Live blog: You can follow all the action on matchday via Standard Sport’s live blog, with expert analysis from xxx at the ground.
Free highlights: The FA Cup’s YouTube channel will show highlights at full time.
Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa team news
Remarkably, Aston Villa will make the trip to Wembley with no players out injured. A question mark continues to hang over Ollie Watkins as he publicly campaigns for increased minutes, though Unai Emery has hinted the player has been managing a minor injury for some time which has limited his playing time and prevented him from gaining a foothold in the starting XI.
Palace are not so lucky, but their injury list is far from extensive. Ben Chilwell is the most recent addition as he missed the trip to the Emirates through illness.
Chris Richards will come back into the fold having served his one-match suspension after being shown a second yellow card in last week’s goalless draw at home to Bournemouth. Chieck Doucoure and Chadi Riad remain unavailable with long-term injuries, neither are expected to play again this season.
Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa prediction
Palace do have something of a penchant for making deep runs in the FA Cup, but their appearances in finals are few and far between, most recently making it to the tournament’s final stage 35 years ago. With Villa enjoying one of their better seasons in recent memory, one would imagine the pattern will continue.
So far this season, Villa have beaten PSG, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City, drawn with Liverpool, and just recently scored four at home to Newcastle. While it is true that they had shipped four when they last faced Crystal Palace, they will more than likley get their own back under the Wembley arch.
Head to head (h2h) history and results
Crystal Palace vs Aston Villa match odds
Crystal Palace win: 21/10
Odds via Betfair (subject to change).
