'Our intercontinental adventure to Villa final'

A father and son have set off on an intercontinental adventure to follow Aston Villa to their historic European final in Istanbul.

Gareth Cheadle and his son Kealan said they felt "quietly confident" the team would reach the final, so started planning the trip early.

Speaking on BBC Radio WM, they said their original plans "snowballed" as more destinations were added.

The pair will visit Valencia, Milan, Sharm El Sheikh then Istanbul before going to Berlin on their way home to Halesowen.

The trip is also marking Kealan's 21st birthday in a couple of months.

"It is a memory that will last a lifetime," his dad said. "It is a fantastic opportunity."

The pair admitted they had not managed to get to any of Villa's away games during the Europa League run, and narrowly missed out on tickets for the quarter-final in Lille.

Even if Villa had not made it, they were determined to enjoy their travels.

"We had a chat and said, 'shall we book a bit of a trip, and a few places on the way just in case Villa don't get there?' Then we kept adding more destinations," Gareth continued.

"If Villa didn't get there, we would have watched whoever did."

One of the highlights of the trip is four nights in a five star all-inclusive hotel in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt.

Going into the game, Kealan is feeling optimistic. "I am feeling confident, I think we can win," he said.

If Villa did beat Freiburg, it would be the team's first major trophy for 30 years.

His dad is a bit more cautious, however.

"I am more sceptical. The Nottingham Forrest game showed we can turn up for any occasion. Fingers crossed we have another performance like that."

He is also looking forward to the atmosphere in Istanbul.

"We have been to a couple of European away days and the atmosphere is great with around 2,000 or 3,000 people there," he added.

"With the numbers going over, it is going to be dramatically more than that. I can't wait, it is going to be a great occasion."