‘You've got to’ - BBC pundits pinpoint key difference in Preston North End's FA Cup defeat to Aston Villa

That’s the verdict of BBC pundits Dion Dublin and Micah Richards, who are adamant the Lilywhites made a good account of themselves despite the defeat to Aston Villa.

North End’s fantastic cup run came to an end on Sunday afternoon as they fell to a 3-0 loss to Unai Emery’s men. Although Paul Heckingbottom’s men impressed in the first half, the Premier League outfit proved too much after the break.

A quick-fire double from Marcus Rashford was then followed up by a Morgan Rodgers strike late in the afternoon at Deepdale as Preston fell just short of a semi-final trip to Wembley,

And ex-Villa striker Dion Dublin was adamant his former club had too much in their armoury against the side who sit 14th in the Championship.

Speaking on Match of the Day, he said: ‘They just passed and passed. Preston became tired because the ball was being moved so quickly. Preston haven’t played against teams who move the ball with such control and such professionalism. For me, Villa were very professional to see the game out.

‘It’s got to have been tough, eight players out and would’ve probably been eight starters as well. They gave it their best but came up against a better side with more quality. When Marcus is smiling and scoring goals, he’s a dangerous player.’

Injuries hampered Preston against Villa

In the build-up to the cup tie, Heckingbottom confirmed goalkeeper Freddie Woodman will likely miss the remainder of the campaign with an ankle injury.

The North End number one was one of eight players unavailable whether it be through injury, suspension or ineligibility. That was a key reason why Preston fell off in the second half, according to Richards.

‘They put all their eggs into this game,’ he said. ‘It was going to be very tough for them but I thought Preston did really well in the first half. At times they got exposed in the wide areas but they stood firm.

‘The game was always going to open up in the second half - it always does. Footballers tire and then the quality goes up from Villa and then they (Preston) couldn’t really deal with the threat, which I expected.

‘You've got to give hats off to Preston for getting this far. It’s been such a long time, they made a good account of themselves in the first half but just not enough quality in the end.’

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