Cash strikes as Villa beat Man City to mark Emery anniversary in style

Cash strikes as Villa beat Man City to mark Emery anniversary in style

Aston Villa marked manager Unai Emery’s third anniversary with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Manchester City on Sunday, thanks to a first-half strike from Matty Cash.

The victory, Villa’s fourth consecutive Premier League triumph, came as a timely response to their midweek Europa League upset against Go Ahead Eagles. It also lifted the Birmingham-based side to seventh on the log and extended their impressive home record against City to three straight wins.

Cash’s goal in the 19th minute proved decisive. The Polish international latched onto a short corner from Emiliano Buendia, controlled the ball at the edge of the box, and curled a low shot beyond Gianluigi Donnarumma into the bottom corner.

“It was a nice strike,” Cash told the BBC. “I’ve scored four this season for club and country. On the edge of the box I like shooting—it’s what I like to do in training.”

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City, who came into the match on a nine-game unbeaten run across all competitions, struggled to find rhythm. Manager Pep Guardiola admitted his side lacked intensity.

“In the first half the pressing wasn’t good, in the second half it was better,” Guardiola told Sky Sports. “We were not aggressive enough. We will learn from that. It’s a long journey, we will try to be close at the end.”

City’s best chance came in the sixth minute when Tijjani Reijnders fired just over the bar. Erling Haaland also came close three minutes after Villa’s opener but his effort was smothered by Emiliano Martinez.

Villa continued to threaten, with John McGinn and Ollie Watkins both testing City’s defence. Jadon Sancho, who replaced the injured Buendia early on, nearly doubled the lead in the 69th minute but was denied twice by Donnarumma.

City’s late push for an equaliser was thwarted when Haaland’s 89th-minute tap-in was ruled out for offside in the build-up involving Phil Foden.

The result leaves City six points behind league leaders Arsenal, while Villa continue their surge up the table with renewed confidence.

Cash strikes as Villa beat Man City to mark Emery anniversary in style