Prince William celebrates 'amazing night' as Villa fans party

Prince William was among those celebrating in Istanbul as Aston Villa win the Europa League

Prince William was every Aston Villa fan on Wednesday as they ended their 30-year wait for a trophy by beating Freiburg 3-0 in the Europa League final in Istanbul.

The Prince of Wales showed a range of emotions throughout the final at Besiktas Park as Villa looked to win their first European trophy since 1982.

After a release of emotions for Villa's three goals, the prince posted a message of congratulations.

He said: "Amazing night!! Huge congratulations to all the players, team, staff and everyone connected to the club! 44 years since the last taste of European silverware!

"Special shout out to Boubacar Kamara who has been out injured but is such an integral part of our team and helped lay the foundations of this success."

With an estimated 20,000 fans present to turn the Turkish city into 'Astonbul', Villa secured their first Europa League title with goals from Youri Tielemans, Emiliano Buendia and Morgan Rogers.

Before the match, Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks shared a special message in support of Villa.

In an eight-second clip sent to BBC Radio WM, the Hollywood star and Villa fan said: "This is Tom Hanks in the United States of America, thinking one thing and one thing only, go Villa."

Victory started a party that is only just beginning, with a parade in Birmingham on Thursday.

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Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Prince William was soaking it all in before kick-off

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, The nerves settled in as Villa struggled to find a breakthrough

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Pure relief for Prince William as Villa open the scoring

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Yet more delight for Prince William as Villa double their lead on the brink of half-time

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Prince William celebrates again as Villa make it 3-0

A regular visitor to Villa Park, Prince William was spotted in the crowd celebrating as Villa beat Nottingham Forest earlier this month to secure their place in the Europa League final.

So it was only right that the prince made the trip to Turkey to witness Villa history.

Television cameras picked up on the prince soaking it all in before kick-off, before celebrating with those close by as Villa got a grip on the trophy.

The prince also made sure to capture the historic moment when John McGinn hoisted the trophy high above his head.

Villa captain McGinn labelled Prince William as "just a normal guy" after the win.

McGinn told TNT Sports: "He's a classy man, he was in the dressing room before the game.

"He's a massive Villa fan, he was never going to miss it. He's just a normal guy, it's great to have his support."

The prince started supporting Villa during his school days in Berkshire, choosing a team further afield as he did not want to follow the crowd.