Aston Villa right-back Matty Cash was understandably beaming after scoring the only goal of the game against Manchester City on Sunday.
Villa picked up their fourth successive Premier League win by beating the Cityzens at Villa Park. Cash collected the ball from a slightly misplaced corner and fired home the first-half winner, putting Villa in a much more respectable position in the table.
It was Cash’s second major impact in as many games. His incredible pass for Lucas Digne against Tottenham Hotspur a week earlier set up the winning goal for Emi Buendía as Villa claimed their first away league victory of the season.
Cash started the season in good form and continued to raise his level as the players around him gradually found their feet. He has two Premier League goals to his name this season, as well as a few for Poland, and has now signed a new contract that runs until the summer of 2029 with an option for a further year.
“I play with a lot of confidence” Cash said this on the official club website.
‘I’ve always had a good chance’
“To be honest, I’ve always had a good shot, but I’ve never really shown it in games. This season it seems to be going my way and every time I get the ball on the edge of the penalty area I’m confident and I feel like I’m going to hit the target a lot.”
Cash admitted after the match that the corner kick routine that led to his stunning finish was not intended to create a shooting opportunity for him, but to pick out teammate Morgan Rogers.
He produced a superb left-footed finish, but it was the defensive work from Cash and his colleagues that really stood out at Villa Park.
“When you play against a quality team, they will obviously dominate the ball a lot and get good chances,” said the Poland international.
Cash signs new Villa deal
“But we did a lot of work on defending the penalty area on Saturday. We know they have top quality wingers and strikers. It was about being resilient and defending well, getting them on the counter-attack and I thought we were brilliant overall.”
A new contract for Cash has been in the works for some time and he signed it at the height of his reputation at the club. He has been heavily criticized – too heavily in my opinion – but has shut out the noise this season to help Villa out of a bad start.
He joined from Nottingham Forest in 2020 and has been a regular in the team ever since. In five years he evolved as a Premier League player, during which in reality his club had to do the same.
Cash has been a trusted player for manager Unai Emery throughout his time at the club and has long since started to gain recognition for the positive aspects of his game.
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