Aston Villa defender Matty Cash granted Polish citizenship

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Aston Villa defender Matty Cash received Polish citizenship on Tuesday and is available to play for the national team starting with its World Cup qualifying matches in November.

The 24-year-old right back was born in England but is eligible to play for Poland through his grandfather. His mother was born in Poland.

“This is a very important day for me and my family,” Cash wrote in Polish on Twitter. “My application for Polish citizenship has been approved by the Polish authorities. I would like to thank the president, my family and other people who helped me in this. Time for new challenges, I will do my best for this country.”

Cash has been in discussions with the Polish soccer federation since 2019, when he played for Nottingham Forest. He joined Villa last year and has been a regular at right back.

Poland is in second place in its World Cup qualifying group, three points behind England, and plays Andorra and Hungary in its final qualifiers.

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