Unai Emery delighted with Matty Cash
Aston Villa manager Unai Emery has praised the versatility of Matty Cash as his first-half double helped his side ease past Burnley in the Premier League.
Cash, who normally plays as a right back was deployed as a right winger in Lancashire, ahead of Leon Bailey, a decision which proved to be the right one.
The Poland international put Villa ahead in the eighth minute when he bundled Ollie Watkins' ball across the six-yard box over the line.
And he was at it again in the 20th minute when finished off a fine Villa move after great link-up play with Moussa Diaby on the edge of the box before firing beyond James Trafford.
"Because Matty Cash has played before as a winger," he said when asked why he made the decision to pick Cash on the wing.
"He has played sometimes in a back four which is lower but we used him in the pre-season playing higher as a winger and as a full-back.
"He helped us a lot today defensively and then offensively he used his moment to remember the moment when he used to play as a winger for Nottingham Forest.
"His two goals were a good example for us but we know he can play there and in other positions like at the end when he played at left-back when Lucas Digne came off."
It was a comfortable afternoon's work for Villa, who despite a wobble at the start of the second half, went on to record a comfortable 3-1 win, which could have been more, and Emery was pleased.
He said: "Away is always more difficult than at home but we were very focused and consistent.
"We were strong defensively and then we have players with quality and like that, you can get a good performance. I think we did that.
"Defensively they were playing very tight so it was very difficult to do more than 5-10 passes in combination.
"But today we got the moment to do it (pass the ball) and the second goal was an example of it.
"When we cannot do passes we need to be clinical and more efficient and more direct than normal.
"Of course, the adaption of the opponent was always the first step to respect them and trying to understand how is going to do our game plan. And today, more or less in 90 minutes we respected them and we were always trying to impose our idea."
