There is a familiar name on the Aston Villa injury list ahead of Saturday’s Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest meeting at Villa Park. Matty Cash – the Nigel Doughty Academy graduate who was converted from a winger into a right-back at the City Ground before joining Villa in 2020 – was left out of Unai Emery’s squad for Tuesday’s Champions League trip to Club Brugge, and his availability against his former club has not yet been resolved.
Why Cash missed Club Brugge
Villa won 3-2 in Belgium without him. As reported by the Nottingham Post, citing sister title Birmingham Live, Cash was left at home with muscle discomfort as Villa moved to protect their first-choice right-back. Aaron Wan-Bissaka made his debut in his place.
That is precaution rather than diagnosis, and nothing has been confirmed either way. Emery faces the media on Friday to preview the game, which is when Forest supporters will get a firm answer. Cash has faced the Reds several times since leaving and has never given the impression of a man who treats it as just another fixture.
The rest of Villa’s list
Cash is not the only absentee Emery is juggling. Leon Goretzka ruled himself out earlier this week, and Johan Manzambi remains sidelined after Emery’s update on the midfielder. Brian Madjo was also missing in Bruges, though he was not registered in Villa’s Champions League squad in any case.
There is a scheduling edge here too, and it belongs to Forest. Villa played 90 competitive minutes in Belgium on Tuesday night and had the travel either side of it. Oliver Glasner’s side have had a clear week on the training ground since the Tottenham Hotspur draw – the first genuinely uninterrupted preparation of their season.
Aston Villa vs Nottingham Forest: how the Reds are shaping up
Close to a clean bill of health, by the sound of it. Ibrahim Sangaré was not risked for the 0-0 draw with Spurs at the City Ground after a knock had already kept him out of the trip to Anfield, but Glasner framed that as caution rather than a setback.
“He was not risked,” the head coach said after the Spurs game. “We always have Tuesday and Wednesday as quite intense sessions. Here, he was not training with the team or just partly in the last two days. There were no issues and we said we don’t want to take any risks.
“It means now he gets an individual session today (Sunday), Monday he can relax and on Tuesday he should be completely fine. Everybody aside from Savona would have been available, but it just makes no sense risking anything at the beginning of the season.”
Nicolò Savona is the one long-term absence. The full-back is working his way back from a knee problem, with Glasner recently indicating the Italian could rejoin training with his team-mates during or shortly after the September international break. Daniel Muñoz, signed from Crystal Palace on deadline day, has that right-hand side covered in the meantime.
What is at stake at Villa Park
A first win of 2026/27. Forest have two points from three Premier League games – a home defeat by Leeds United, then draws at Liverpool and against Spurs – and while the performances have improved, the column that matters has not. Kick-off at Villa Park is 3pm on Saturday.
Whether Cash lines up in it is Emery’s call to make on Friday. Either way, the Tricky Trees arrive fresher than their hosts, which is not nothing at a ground where Forest have historically found the going hard.
Confirmed team news is published by the official Aston Villa website and the official Nottingham Forest website, with fixtures and kick-off times via the Premier League.
