Prince William was in the stands watching Aston Villa’s victory (Image: Getty)
Aston Villa captain John McGinn told Prince William: “Play your cards!” After leading the club to Europa League glory in Istanbul. The Prince of Wales was a spectator at Besiktas Stadium as Villa won their first trophy in 30 years and their first European silver medal since the 1982 European Cup final.
After the trophy presentation, Slipper McGinn revealed that William had visited the team before kick-off. “He’s a classy guy,” McGinn told TNT Sports. “He was in the dressing room before the game. He’s a big Villa fan so there was no way he would have missed the game. He’s a normal guy. It’s great to have his support and I hope it continues. And tonight he’ll have a few drinks with us and by the end of the night he might be able to issue you a credit card!”
After Villa’s 3-0 win over Freiburg, Prince William wrote in X: “What a great night!! Huge congratulations to the players, team, staff and everyone at the club! 44 years since we last tasted European silverware!”
“A special shout out to Boubacar Camara, who is out with an injury. He has been an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundation for this success. UTV! VTID, W.”
Goalscorer Morgan Rodgers believes Villa made history with the win. Youri Tielemans took the lead in the 40th minute with a brilliant volley, and in first-half stoppage time Emiliano Buendia extended Villa’s lead to two points with a stunning curling shot.
Rodgers put the game away with his third goal just before the hour mark as Unai Emery’s side cruised to a comfortable victory and lifted their first trophy since 1996 League Cup. It also happened 44 years after they defeated Bayern Munich to win the European Cup. “It’s hard to put into words. We’ve worked hard for this,” Rodgers told TNT.
“We knew we had one more game to go, but everyone gave their all and got through. It was a great moment for the fans and for the club, and will go down in history.”
“It was a great opportunity for us to go and win a trophy, and we were all really excited. We understood the challenge in front of us to get the job done, and we got it done.”
Aston Villa players lift the iconic Europa League trophy (Image: Getty)
Prince William was delighted with Aston Villa’s comfortable win (Image: Getty)
Prince William poses with the Europa League trophy and Unai Emery (Image: Aston Villa FC)
Victory in Turkey means Villa manager Emery’s fifth Europa League title and is on track to lead the club to fourth place in the Premier League. Striker Ollie Watkins said: “It feels great. It was unbelievable to perform like that. We really controlled the game and punished them in the end. It’s an unbelievable experience. It’s everyone’s dream.”
“Sometimes the season has its ups and downs, but we overcame it, moved on, qualified for the Champions League, and the feeling I have now is indescribable.
“Unai was really calm today. Sometimes in the league you get a little nervous because you want us to win, but today he was really calm and that set the tone.”
Meanwhile, centre-back Ezri Konsa reflected: “I don’t think it has sunk in yet. I said a while ago what a big journey it has been over the past seven years at this club, we’ve been through a lot of ups and downs, but to finally get back the silverware is amazing and I can’t even put it into words.”
“Look at what it means to the fans, the players, and some of us who have been here for a long time. And for the fans who have worked so hard, this is for them.”
