Prestonvs.Aston Villa

Paul Heckingbottom's men trounced Burnley 3-0 in the last 16 to reach the final eight for the first time since 1966, whereas Villa claimed a 2-0 win over Cardiff City in their most recent cup outing.

Both sides also went into the international break on the back of morale-boosting successes, as PNE edged out Portsmouth in the Championship, while the Lions defeated Club Brugge to reach the Champions League quarter-finals.

Here, Sports Mole takes an in-depth look at the head-to-head record and previous meetings between the two sides.

Head-to-head record

Previous meetings: 116

Preston wins: 38

Draws: 21

Aston Villa wins: 57

Preston North End vs. Aston Villa has the honour of being one of the oldest head-to-heads on the English football calendar, as their maiden encounter was fought all the way back in 1888, an FA Cup tie that PNE won 3-1.

However, Villa have since taken control of the head-to-head charts, as the Lions have enjoyed 57 victories over Preston, who in turn have prevailed on 38 occasions, and another 21 battles have ended all square.

In fact, each of the last three league meetings between Aston Villa and Preston have ended in a share of the spoils, although those were all fought in the pre-COVID days of 2018 across two separate Championship seasons.

The 2018-19 second-tier campaign saw Preston hold Villa to a 1-1 draw at Deepdale in December, a couple of months on from a six-goal spectacular at Villa Park, where the Lions found themselves 2-0 up and 3-2 down before Yannick Bolasie bagged the winner in added time.

Those stalemates have contributed to a pleasing sequence of results for Villa in this particular battle, though, as the West Midlands outfit have now only been beaten in one of their last 15 matches against Preston in all tournaments.

That solitary success for PNE came at Deepdale in October 2016, where Ben Pearson and Jordan Hugill propelled their side to a 2-0 win over an Aston Villa outfit boasting a young Jack Grealish.

Both sides have enjoyed emphatic five-goal victories in this fixture down the years, as Preston's biggest win over Villa was a 6-1 First Division drubbing in 1920, while the Lions pummelled PNE 5-0 in the fourth round of the 2002-03 League Cup, where Darius Vassell (2), Dion Dublin, Juan Pablo Angel and Thomas Hitzlsperger found the target.

Last 20 meetings

Dec 29, 2018: Preston 1-1 Aston Villa (Championship)

Oct 02, 2018: Aston Villa 3-3 Preston (Championship)

Feb 20, 2018: Aston Villa 1-1 Preston (Championship)

Nov 01, 2017: Preston 0-2 Aston Villa (Championship)

Jan 21, 2017: Aston Villa 2-2 Preston (Championship)

Oct 01, 2016: Preston 2-0 Aston Villa (Championship)

Dec 04, 2002: Aston Villa 5-0 Preston (League Cup Fourth Round)

Jan 19, 1974: Preston 0-0 Aston Villa (Second Division)

Aug 25, 1973: Aston Villa 2-0 Preston (Second Division)

Feb 17, 1973: Aston Villa 1-1 Preston (Second Division)

Aug 12, 1972: Preston 0-1 Aston Villa (Second Division)

Apr 24, 1971: Preston 0-0 Aston Villa (Third Division)

Sep 19, 1970: Aston Villa 2-0 Preston (Third Division)

Jan 31, 1970: Preston 1-1 Aston Villa (Second Division)

Oct 04, 1969: Aston Villa 0-0 Preston (Second Division)

Jan 18, 1969: Preston 1-0 Aston Villa (Second Division)

Nov 09, 1968: Aston Villa 0-1 Preston (Second Division)

Mar 18, 1968: Preston 2-1 Aston Villa (Second Division)

Sep 09, 1967: Aston Villa 1-0 Preston (Second Division)

Jan 28, 1967: Preston 0-1 Aston Villa (FA Cup Third Round)

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Written by

Ben Knapton