Football
Exclusive: Aston Villa’s Matty Cash Could Be Heading for the Exit as Bournemouth and Everton Circle
Bournemouth and Everton are set to battle for Aston Villa's right-back Matty Cash with Nottingham Forest also in the mix. Cash, a Poland international, has Premier League experience and is valued at £20-25million. Everton seeks a permanent right-back after missing out on Kenny Tete. Cherries need defensive reinforcements after losing key players. Cash has been a consistent performer for Villa since his arrival in 2020.
AFC Bournemouth v Aston Villa FC - Premier League by Richard Heathcote | Getty Images
Bournemouth and Everton are both ready to raid Premier League rivals Aston Villa for sought-after right-back Matty Cash when the transfer window re-opens, SportsBoom can exclusively reveal.
And our sources have also learnt that long-time admirers Nottingham Forest hope to be first to the punch to the land the admired Poland international in a deal which is expected to be worth between £20-25million.
Cash played a pivotal role on international duty last week, helping his country secure a 1-1 draw away to the Netherlands in their World Cup qualifier.
The 28-year-old, with extensive Premier League experience, netted the equaliser for Poland, stunning the hosts at Feyenoord Stadium.
Cash has been Villa’s number one right-back for the past five seasons and has started in every Premier League game for Unai Emery’s side so far this campaign.
However, the former Forest has been in hot demand for some time and has been linked with a move to his former club during the past 12 months.
And the Cherries and Toffees, both of whom are desperate to sign a right-back, are also poised to make serious moves to sign Cash when the window re-opens on 1st January.
Forest were rumoured to have missed out on a deal before the summer transfer window, but Villa refused to comment on any potential interest in their player.
PERMANENT REPLACEMENT
Everton, meanwhile, are hungry to sign a permanent long-term right-back having failed to land Fulham right-back Kenny Tete during the last transfer window.
The Toffees believed they were close to tempting Dutch international Tete to play at their new Hill Dickinson Stadium, but instead the 29-year-old signed a new three-year deal to stay with the Cottagers until July 2028.
The Cherries virtually lost all of their defence following the high-profile departures of goalkeeper Kepa Arrizablaga and top-performing defenders Milos Kerkez, Dean Huijsen, and Illia Zabarnyi.
New summer signing Truffet, who has replaced Kerkez at left-back, has looked assured since his arrival from French Ligue 1 side Stade Rennais, but the south coast club need defensive reinforcements.
Cash has now played over 150 Premier League games for Villa and has been a consistent performer for the club since his arrival in September 2020 on a five-year deal, which has since been extended by two more years with a new five-year deal negotiated in March 2022.
Neil has been a journalist for longer than he'd care to remember, having written for national newspapers and respected publications for over 25 years. For the last three years he has worked freelance for BBC Sport, working on the production desk as a sub-editor and also as a writer, covering a whole range of sports.