Prince William shows true colours with Prince George change of heart | Football | Sport

Prince William has changed his position after previously instructing his son, Prince George, to support any club apart from Chelsea. The Blues are preparing to take on Manchester City in the FA Cup final on Saturday. It has been a turbulent season for Chelsea, who languish ninth in the Premier League, as the club attempt to salvage silverware from the campaign.

Interim manager Calum McFarlane will guide the side at Wembley Stadium following the departure of two managers, Enzo Maresca and Liam Rosenior, this term. The west London outfit will go into the match as underdogs against City as they seek to claim the coveted trophy for the ninth time in their history.

While supporters at Wembley will endeavour to inspire the team to triumph, Prince William previously advised his eldest son against backing Chelsea.

In 2019, while appearing on the BBC‘s A Berry Royal Christmas, he was questioned about Prince George’s burgeoning passion for football. “I try not to be too biased, I said you can support anyone but Chelsea, so naturally he supports Chelsea,” he said.

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Prince William is a devoted Aston Villa supporter, as evidenced by his jubilant celebrations during the club’s recent 4-0 victory over Nottingham Forest at Villa Park. The 43-year-old was visibly elated as Unai Emery’s squad secured their place in the Europa League final.

The Prince of Wales has been spotted at numerous Villa matches over the years, including their Champions League quarter-final away clash at Paris Saint-Germain last season.

Prince William attended that fixture with Prince George, whom he hopes will embrace Villa, but emphasised that the 12-year-old was now at liberty to follow any club, representing a change in heart from his earlier remarks about Chelsea.

“I’m genuinely open to whoever they support,” Prince William told TNT Sports. “I’m a bit biased but also they come to Villa games so they’re probably going to support Villa. I’ve left the other two at home tonight so we’ll wait and see who they support.”

The royal had already mellowed his position on Prince George becoming a Chelsea follower during Frank Lampard’s first stint as manager in 2020. “It’s about finding what fits for him,” Prince William said on That Peter Crouch podcast.

“Previously, I was a bit concerned about him supporting Chelsea, but now Frank’s come in, I feel the culture’s a bit different at Chelsea and I’d be okay with it.

“I do like the values and the ethos of the clubs. I want them to look after the players and set a good example to the young fans.

“I want our children, when they go the match, to come away loving what they’ve seen, enjoying it and seeing their role models behave in a way that we’d all want them to.”

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Prince William will no doubt have the Europa League final firmly circled in his diary, as Villa prepare to face Freiburg on Wednesday, May 20. Emery’s men are now just one match away from claiming their first major trophy since 1996.

The Prince of Wales was spotted punching the air with unbridled joy as Villa delivered a stunning 4-0 demolition of Forest, and he later joined the squad in the dressing room to celebrate. Villa manager Emery remarked: “He was in the dressing room with the players and with me, and of course, he is so happy as well.”