Aston Villa defender Matty Cash looks to be closing in on a return to action as both he and the club have provided updates on his recovery from injury this week.
Villa confirmed ahead of our encounter with Wolves last weekend that Cash had returned to group training last Thursday, but he ultimately wasn’t deemed fit enough to feature as he failed to make the matchday squad.
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It was hoped that with another week of training to build his fitness that he would be available against Tottenham this Saturday in what is a hugely important showdown for us, and the signs appear to be positive.
As seen in the tweets below, both Cash and Villa have dropped hints that he is now on the verge of making his comeback, and so the expectation is that he will be involved this weekend.
However, the question remains as to whether he will be fit enough to start, or if he will have to initially settle for a place on the bench and Ashley Young continues at right-back for another week.
Cash, 25, has missed our last eight games after picking up a calf injury on international duty, and not only has his absence been a blow for us, but it was made all the more significant given his excellent form prior to the setback.
While Young has done an excellent job filling in for him, and has even made a strong case to keep his spot, it’s a lot to demand of the veteran and particularly with three big games coming up to end the Premier League season, we could certainly do with fresh legs, energy and impetus down our right side.
Unai Emery will no doubt provide a more definitive update in his pre-match press conference on Friday, but the signs are positive that Cash will provide us with another fitness boost after both Diego Carlos and Boubacar Kamara came off the bench to feature against Wolves and likely gave all concerned an important lift.
It was slightly longer than expected , but it’s so good to be back on the grass with the lads 💜⚽️ pic.twitter.com/5HApX9HScr
— Matty Cash (@mattycash622) May 9, 2023
🔙 @MattyCash622 🔜 pic.twitter.com/4xXq2WWYQF
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) May 10, 2023