Aston Villa defender Matty Cash was heavily praised for his point-saving block against West Ham, as Unai Emery’s side were forced to settle with a 1-1 draw at the London Stadium.
It was a day that ended in relief for Aston Villa at the London Stadium, as the Villans settled for a point against West Ham United.
The hosts were denied a last-gasp winner thanks to the intervention of VAR, who ruled Tomas Soucek’s goal out for a handball, seeing the points shared between the two sides.
While Villa dominated possession, it was West Ham who had the better chances for the majority of the fixture however, an improved performance from Unai Emery’s side in the second half levelled the playing field.
Aston Villa were tested by a host of match-defining interventions
For all the pressure that the Villans both applied and weathered, a point will be a result that the squad can be pleased to take back to Birmingham.
Of course, the Midlands club would have wanted more from the game in order to widen the gap in the race for the top-four however, West Ham came agonisingly close to making it another bad Sunday in the Premier League for Emery.
Two disallowed goals saw the hosts miss out on two efforts that they had put in the back of the net, as Michail Antonio had his second of the game chalked off and Soucek’s winner at the death was cancelled out after an agonisingly long VAR check.
While VAR will take the headlines for the ruling out of two goals during the draw, it was Matty Cash who made the ultimate game-defining intervention on the pitch.
Matty Cash saved a point for Aston Villa against West Ham
In the dying embers of the contest, it looked as though the combination of Mohamed Kudus and James Ward-Prowse was about to win the game for the Hammers however, Cash had other ideas.
The Poland international was heavily praised for throwing himself at Ward-Prowse’s effort on goal, lauded as “unbelievable” by journalist Luis Miguel Echegaray.
Plenty of figures watching the game unfold had some strong words for the Villa defender after his block, with BBC Sport pundit Danny Gabbidon saying:
“Absolutely tremendous from Matty Cash throwing himself in the way.”
“He comes from nowhere, outstanding.”
Despite starting the contest on the bench to see Ezri Konsa assume the role at right-back, Cash entered the game and gave Emery a headache over future selection with his performance.
As per Sofascore, the 26-year-old won two out of his three attempted ground duels, as well as providing a spark in the final third by recording two successful dribbles.
For his point-saving block alone, Cash was one of the brightest performers on the pitch for the Villans, giving the manager something to think about when he next ponders selection.
