Aston Villa Transfers: Cash In

Five weeks of the “summer” transfer window have passed and after countless newspaper headlines, “In The Know” accounts throwing darts with their eyes closed and Villa fans spamming the comments section of every tweet posted by the Aston Villa admin, Villa have secured their first new recruit ahead of the 2020/21 season, confirming the signing of Matty Cash from Nottingham Forest for a reported £14m, possibly rising to £16m with add-ons. Cash signed a 5-year deal at Villa Park.

Profile:

• Position: Right-back.
• Secondary positions: Winger, Central Midfield
• Age: 23.
• Height: 6’1.
• Place of birth: Slough, England (the home of David Brent).
• Previous clubs: Nottingham Forest (141 appearances over 4 seasons, an average of 35 appearances per season).
• Injury history: Fractured tibia against Villa in a 2-2 draw at Villa Park in 2016, ankle ligament damage in 2018.

The Bottom Line

Right-back certainly wouldn’t have been the first position I expected Villa to target this summer, but this is a welcome addition all the same. Matty Cash fits the profile for an Aston Villa signing; experienced at a good level of football –4 years as a starter in the ultra-competitive Championship – and at 23 years old, a young and hungry player that Dean Smith and his team of coaches can mould and improve, as he enters the prime of his career.

Cash spent his first three seasons as a starter playing as a winger, before making the move to right-back last season. This yielded impressive results, as Cash won the Player of the Year award at Nottingham Forest.

A move from Forest has been mooted for some time for Cash, as he has been linked with a move to Sheffield United, Fulham, Burnley, Southampton, West Ham United, AC Milan, Chelsea and RB Leipzig in recent years. One of the most in-demand players in the Championship, Cash was eager to get his move, due to his desire to test himself in the Premier League, and in the process becomes the most expensive full-back purchased from a Championship club.

Matty Cash was WhoScored’s highest rated Championship full-back for the 2019/20 season and ranked in the top 20 of all Championship players.

Full Throttle Full-Back

Matty Cash established himself as a fan favourite during his time at The City Ground and it’s easy to see why. The first thing that jumps out when you watch Cash play is his high energy performances; he does everything at full speed and with maximum effort. Cash has some Alan Hutton about him, and I mean that in the best way. Cash said in his interview with VillaTV that once he heard of Villa’s interest, he told his agent “don’t even worry about anywhere else, I want to come here and play”, that will endear him to the Claret and Blue Army – who demand that players fight for the shirt – from the get-go. I’d be surprised if Cash doesn’t become a cult hero at Villa Park.

A Natural Defender

Matty Cash may have spent most of his career as a winger, but he took to his new role like a duck to water. Cash has a great feel for timing a tackle and frequently pokes the ball away from attackers when they least expect it. Complimenting this finesse is his penchant for tackling hard, evidenced by a video circulating Twitter, showing Cash tearing through West Brom’s Filip Krovinovic with a firm-but-fair challenge. This blend of intelligence and aggression is further demonstrated by his impressive skills at intercepting the ball. Cash also possesses the physical attributes to excel defensively, with a 6’1 frame, he’s able to hold off and lean into his opponents. His aggression may need to be ever so slightly curtailed to avoid it being taken advantage of by superior competition in the Premier League, but you can fully expect Matty Cash to be a fun watch without the ball, as well as with it.

Cash led the Championship in interceptions for the 19/20 season.

Attack is the Best Form of Defence

Unsurprisingly, Matty Cash falls into the category of “an attacking full-back”. He makes aggressive attacking runs and isn’t afraid to take opponents on one-on-one, but also shows examples of impressive technical ability, picking out passes and whipping in tempting crosses. The move to right-back has benefitted Cash, as he seems to revel in picking the ball up in deeper positions, driving forward and picking up speed. Although Cash was effective dribbling the ball for Forest, he has a kind of rumbling/stumbling style and doesn’t always look in full control, so that’s an area of his game that could use some refinement.

Cash had the 6^th best dribble success rate of all Championship right-backs for the 19/20 season (61.24%).

Cash had the 10^th most attempted crosses of all right-sided Championship players for the 19/20 season.

Cash was involved in 8 goals during the 19/20 Championship season.

Final Thoughts

On the surface, Aston Villa’s acquisition of Matty Cash may seem like a luxury signing. It’s true that this move has one eye on the future, with Ahmed Elmohamady entering the final year of his contract at Villa Park and turning 33-years-old in a matter of days, but there’s every reason to believe Cash can contribute early on. Cash is a different type of full-back to the more defensive Frederic Guilbert, providing Dean Smith with the option to use his different horses for different courses. His versatility also allows him to play on the wing – a trouble spot for Villa in the 19/20 season – and also in central midfield.

Matty Cash has all the tools that teams covet in a modern full-back, projects to improve his value, is versatile, has experience and didn’t break the bank. In the end, it was a no-brainer acquisition for Johan Lange, Dean Smith and co.