Emi Martnez Will Keane Aston Villa Preston NE
(Credit: Imago, @BBCMOTD on X)
Keith Hackett
Sun 30 March 2025 19:43, UK
Preston North End defender Lewis Gibson was denied a possible opening goal early on in their FA Cup quarter-final loss to Aston Villa, Keith Hackett has said.
The former PGMOL chief and ex-FIFA official exclusively told Football Insider that VAR should have intervened after a challenge from Will Keane on Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez in his own box.
Villa’s trip to Deepdale was still in its early stages when a coming-together between Keane and Martinez saw the ball break for Gibson, but on-field referee Chris Kavanagh had already blown his whistle.
The two sides went in goalless at half-time, but it would be Villa whose quality shone through in the second half; Marcus Rashford scoring his first two goals for the club within five minutes of each other.
Jacob Ramsey added a third for the visitors eight minutes later following a second assist from Lucas Digne, as Villa strolled through and into the FA Cup semi-finals with an eventually-comfortable 3-0 win.
Marcus Rashford Aston Villa
Marcus Rashford’s double sent Villa on their way to victory over Preston (Credit: Imago)
Lewis Gibson denied after Kavanagh bails out Emi Martinez
Preston hadn’t made the FA Cup semi-finals since all the way back in 1964, and had Kavanagh’s verdict gone the other way to spare Keane of an immediate foul, Gibson’s goal may well have taken them there.
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Martinez attempted to roll the ball out after catching a long throw-in from the hosts at Deepdale, only for Keane to nudge his right arm as he released possession, resulting in the loose ball falling for Gibson.
Preston NE Statistic Aston Villa
0 Goals 3
0.47 xG 3.54
1 / 4 Shots on Target 7 / 16
29% Possession 71%
0 Corners 9
Gibson’s strike didn’t go down as a registered effort due to a foul being blown for during its flight
The Preston defender curled a first-time effort over the stranded Martinez and into the empty net, but the whistle had already gone before it rustled, meaning VAR had no chance to review the goal itself.
Hackett believes that had Kavanagh called play on and then addressed VAR after Gibson’s strike had hit the net, his initial verdict may well have been overturned, and the goal awarded to Preston as a result.
Unai Emery, Aston Villa
Unai Emery’s side were lucky to get away with Gibson’s disallowed goal early on (Credit: Imago)
Preston man denied dream Aston Villa goal as VAR ‘harshly’ ignored – Keith Hackett
After being asked by Football Insider if Kavanagh should have allowed play to continue before calling on VAR to check Gibson‘s effort and the contact from Keane on Martinez, the former FIFA referee said:
“[Chris Kavanagh] has determined that the goalkeeper was impeded – albeit that it looks harsh because of the changed direction of the ball.
“[It’s] a difficult one for VAR to intervene given the incident is subjective, and not a clear and obvious error.
“When there is an element of doubt, then I would like the VAR to intervene and to let the referee have another look, as per your suggestion.”
Preston taking the lead in the seventh minute of their first FA Cup quarter-final since 1966 could’ve had a huge impact on the overall result, giving Villa a mountain to climb amid a raucous Deepdale atmosphere.
Given the game was goalless at the break before a Rashford-inspired Villa pulled away in the second half, it’ll forever remain to be seen just how things could have played out if Gibson’s early opener had stood.
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