Albion fan's FA Cup appeal answered by West Brom goalkeeper Ben Foster

But just hours later, he was tweeted back by none other than West Bromwich goalkeeper Ben Foster who offered to give him two tickets.

Mr Hughes, who now lives in London, said Foster was his 'hero' after the kind act.

He said: "I put the tweet out on Thursday morning. Before that I'd asked friends if they were selling any tickets but had not got anywhere.

"The people I mentioned in my tweet retweeted my message. I'm guessing Ben saw it retweeted.

"When I saw what he had tweeted I was shocked and surprised. I didn't believe it at first. I had to follow him on Twitter and then we sent each other some direct messages.

"I told him to let me know which charities he supported so I could give the price of the tickets to charity but he said not to worry."

Mr Hughes was unable to buy tickets from the box office for the FA Cup Sixth Round clash at Villa Park next Saturday (7) as they were only on sale to season ticket holders.

But he was desperate to see his team play in the cup against rivals Villa after watching them beat West Ham in the previous round.

Mr Hughes was born in Wolverhampton and went to Queen Mary's Grammar School in Walsall. His father supported the Baggies and he went to his first game when he was just six years old.

"I'm pretty much obsessed with the Baggies," he added. "I watch them when I can. I lived in Liverpool for a while but used to come back for games. I had a season ticket."

The 29-year-old who works in London as a product director at video ad tech company Unruly, said he was feeling positive about the cup game, predicting a 2-1 win for the Baggies.

He added: "Ben is a hero. There is too much of a gap between players and fans these days. It's pretty amazing what he's done."

Mr Hughes, whose family still live in the Black Country, said he was still deciding who to take to the match.

Foster, aged 31, who joined the Baggies in 2012, also has eight England international caps.