Prince William was in Istanbul to watch his beloved Aston Villa defeat Freiburg in the Europa League final, and later met the hosts of the Claret and Blue podcast.
Prince William admitted it all felt “a bit surreal” as he watched his beloved Aston Villa end their long trophy drought.
The Prince of Wales has been a fan of Villa for many years and attended the game in Istanbul, where they defeated German side Freiburg 3-0 to win the Europa League.
This is Villa’s first trophy since 1996 and their first European trophy since winning the European Cup in 1982…a month before he was born.
Villa defeated them in the first half with goals from Youri Tielemans and Emi Buendia, and the future king cried tears of joy when Morgan Rodgers put the cherry on top for Europe’s victory after the break.
And as Villa players and fans toasted their victory, Prince William called the host of Leitch PLC’s exclusive Villa podcast Claret and Blue into the executive box at Tupras Stadium.
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Matt Kendrick and Dan Rawlinson duly obliged and had a conversation with the royal, who revealed that he never misses an episode to fix the villa, declaring, “Where do you think I’m getting my information from!”
Matt asked Wills how he felt after the final whistle and he said: “It was good, it was unbelievable… it was kind of real.”
Asked why he decided to stay in the box rather than take part in the on-pitch celebrations, he added: “I wanted to go there, but I thought, ‘Let’s let other people have their time.’ This is about the players, it’s about the fans.”
Prince Will has often been seen going through an emotional rollercoaster after the Villa game, but it was more like Unai Emery’s side steamrolling towards victory.
Prince William speaks to Matt Kendrick of Birmingham Mail’s Claret & Blue podcast after Villa’s Europa League win (Image: Reach PLC)
He added: “I was expecting a roller coaster but it actually went very smoothly. I was more nervous before the second leg at Nottingham Forest… I felt more comfortable today.”
“We were sitting here with Elmo (Ahmed Elmohamady) and he knew before Yuri hit the ball that it was going to go into the net and was already celebrating. I said, ‘How did you know it was going to go in?’ and he said, ‘I saw it in training.’
It was a night to remember for Wills and the thousands of Villa fans who traveled from his adopted city. And he toasted the great atmosphere in which the match was played and the relationship between the victorious Villa fans and their defeated opponents.
Villa defender Victor Lindelof’s wife posted a photo of William attending Wednesday night’s afterparty (Image: Instagram/majanilssonlindelof)
To listen to all episodes of Reach’s Claret & Blue podcast – click here
“What I also liked was that the Freiburg fans sat and supported us until the end, and we clapped for them and had a guard of honor. It was just good sportsmanship. It’s always been about the club and we’ve done it properly.”
Villa’s jubilant stars then invited him backstage, where he enjoyed a beer before joining his family for an afterparty that lasted into the evening in Istanbul.
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Aston Villa – Europa League Glory Special Edition now on sale
Unai Emery and his team took home the silverware at Villa Park with the Europa League crown. And to commemorate this, we have created this special edition of this wonderful souvenir that marks Villa’s path to glory.
Packed with interviews, features, striking images and celebrations from a memorable season.
Order your copy here
