FA Cup semi-final date and time solidified for Aston Villa | OneFootball

Having recently received a favorable scheduling decision, Aston Villa now knows the extent of the FA Cup edge that they will have. Unai Emery will play Manchester City on Tuesday and will then play Crystal Palace that Saturday, on the 26th of April at 5:15 pm BST.

Arsenal will still host Palace that Wednesday at the Emirates. This gives Emery one more day to prepare for the FA Cup semi-final match compared to Oliver Glasner. Having an extra 24 hours to potentially get fully fit and spend time to fine-tune aspects could prove useful as the club chases a trophy.

Scheduling is something that is, of course, beyond the control of the club. If the roles were reversed, having one less day wouldn't be enough of a reason to blame losing on when their last Premier League game was played. Considering that it did happen to work out in Villa's favor, though, this is a positive outlook to look forward to at the end of the month.

Factors in Aston Villa's favor

As is, AVFC is at something of an advantage with its depth. Monchi has done an excellent job, particularly with the January signings, to give Emery multiple choices throughout the roster. As the end of the 2024-2025 season approaches, tired legs still continue to build up, and the extra time later between the two competitions could prove to be valuable.

Regardless, it will be an enormous challenge. In a one-off encounter, with history on the line, for whoever ends up making it onto the pitch against Palace, there will be a lot of pressure to go through to the final. With one game at the end of April in Wembley, the job is to earn the chance to play one more in May. Aston Villa will need to make good use of the scheduling fortune that has fallen its way.