Unai Emery’s ambition is on display at Aston Villa, as Matty Cash scores a ‘crazy’ point against Legia Warsaw.
BirminghamLive brings you Aston Villa news as Matty Cash examines the Europa Conference League group stage match at Legia Warsaw.
Matty Cash has returned to familiar territory when Aston Villa arrived in Poland on Wednesday afternoon for their first Europa Conference League group stage match against Legia Warsaw.
The right-back is poised to make his first start in Europe for Villa on Thursday night, having coming off the bench in each of the club’s play-off round victories over Hibernian. He has impressed so far this season, netting three goals in seven games across all competitions after Unai Emery gave him the green light to assault the box more frequently in a new-look Villa system.
Emery has won four European titles in his distinguished career, including three in as many years coaching at Sevilla from 2013-2016. Cash believes experience in the dugout and in the dressing room will be key to Villa’s chances of winning the competition this season.
“Then there are other boys who have competed in European tournaments and have a lot of experience.” Most importantly, we have a large number of players that are desperate to succeed in Europe.”
“Then there are other boys with a lot of experience who have competed in European tournaments.””Most importantly, we have a large number of players who want to succeed in Europe.”
“I don’t think it matters what cup competition or Premier League we play in; every game we play, we want to win,” he went on to say. Not only in Europe, but also in other cup tournaments this season.
“I don’t think it matters what cup competition or Premier League we play in; every game we play, we want to win,” he continued. This season, not only in Europe, but also in the other cup tournaments.
“We want to go as far as we can, and that’s the conversation we’ve had with ourselves and the manager.” We go into every game with the goal of winning, regardless of who we are playing. Europe provides us with an excellent opportunity to do so as well.”
Cash received Polish citizenship in 2021 after qualifying through his mother and grandfather, and he changed his international allegiance. Since then, he has made 13 appearances for Poland, including four in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
When asked if this provides him an advantage on Thursday, Cash responded, “There are a few Polish boys who play there, and I’m sure the manager will ask me the same question during the week.”
“I know a little bit about Legia, which is obviously one of the biggest teams in Poland.” They are a terrific squad with a large fan base, which is fantastic.
“It will undoubtedly be a difficult game, and we will need to prepare thoroughly, which I am confident we will do this week.” The manager will have everyone go over everything with us. It felt fantastic to come into Thursday’s game off the tail of a big win.”
“I’ve played there, and I’ve trained on the pitch a few times with Poland,” he added. Our base is directly adjacent to the stadium with Poland, so I’m extremely familiar with that.
“I know what to anticipate. The supporters there are insane, but to be fair, they are talented and deserve our admiration. I’m excited about it and see it as a fantastic chance for us.”
Legia supporters are well-known for creating a hostile atmosphere at the Stadion Wojska Polskiego. On large European evenings, they deploy pyrotechnics and choreographies to frighten the opposition.
“I’ve never faced it before, but I’m guessing it can be quite intimidating when you go to places like that,” Cash said. “But we have to concentrate on ourselves; we have a great team and a great manager with a lot of experience in these types of ties.” He always keeps us grounded and calm.”
Villa will play six games in total over the next 17 days, beginning with their first Europa Conference League group round match against Legia. Villa defeated Crystal Palace 3-1 on Saturday, but Emery’s focus swiftly shifted to Thursday’s game.
“I was saying to the boys that there is no rest, no time to think really,” Cash explained. “You just prepare, then play and do your best.”
“The games come up quickly, but as a player, you want to play in as many cup competitions and internationals as possible.” That is our duty, even if it is exhausting at times.
“Despite a few injuries that haven’t helped, we are a group that sticks together and fights until the end, as we demonstrated against Crystal Palace.” We have a solid group, and if a few of the injured players return, we’ll be even stronger. We’re just going to keep going.”
