Prince William spotted letting his hair down at Aston Villa afterparty in Istanbul
Maja Nilsson Lindelf captured Prince William at a post-match Aston Villa afterparty in Istanbul.The Swedish influencer, who is married to Villa centre-back and Sweden captain Victor Lindelf, accompanied the photograph with the phrase "Spra ur direkt".This Swedish expression translates to "go off the rails right away" or "derail immediately".The phrase is commonly used in Sweden to describe situations that rapidly spiral out of control or veer dramatically from their intended course.Mrs Lindelf, 32, resides in Manchester with her husband, who joined Villa from Manchester United.The heir to the throne was visibly overcome with emotion as he watched from the stands in Istanbul, shedding tears of happiness as Villa claimed European glory.Wednesday night's triumph over German opponents Freiburg marked the club's first major silverware in nearly three decades, with their previous trophy coming in 1996.The victory also represented Villa's first continental success since lifting the European Cup 44 years ago in 1982.Goals from Youri Tielemans and Emi Buendia before half-time established a commanding position, before Morgan Rogers completed the scoring after the interval.The Prince of Wales, a devoted supporter since childhood, was present for the historic occasion.Following the final whistle, William was welcomed into the inner sanctum of the dressing room festivities, where he shared beers with the victorious squad.Full-back Matty Cash spoke of the royal's presence among the players: "He deserves moments like these and hopefully he can let his hair down."Scottish midfielder John McGinn praised the future king's demeanour, telling TNT Sports: "He's a classy guy, he was in the dressing room before the game. He's a massive Villa fan so was never going to miss it, its great to have his support, he's just a normal guy."McGinn added with a grin: "Hopefully he can have a couple of drinks with us and get his credit card out at the end of the night."The triumph capped a remarkable campaign for Villa, who had already secured their return to the Champions League before travelling to Turkey.For manager Unai Emery, the victory represented a fifth Europa League title, cementing his extraordinary record in the competition."After 1982 the club won the European Cup, it was something they were missing - the supporters - a trophy. Achieving this one is making us so, so happy but we are not going to stop," the Spaniard declared.William paid tribute on social media, offering a "special shout out" to injured midfielder Boubacar Kamara for his role in building the team's success.An estimated 20,000 Villa supporters made the journey to Istanbul, filling the bars around Taksim Square as celebrations continued deep into the night.Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter
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