Dean Smith was left awe-struck by Phil Foden’s performance as Aston Villa lost 2-1 to Premier League leaders Manchester City, as he told the Birmingham Mail.
It is fair to say Matty Cash won’t look back on Wednesday night with too much fondness.
The Aston Villa right-back has been one of the signings of the season but, when Foden came to town, Cash would have known he had his work cut out keeping arguably England’s most in-form attacker on a tight leash.
Foden gave the Villa backline the runaround throughout, cancelling out John McGinn’s opener after a fine Bernardo Silva assist.
And it was his balletic turn, just after half time, which lured Cash into that fateful lunge. A second yellow card for the Aston Villa defender essentially brought a premature end to Smith’s hopes of a second-half rally.
“Some of their play in (the opening) 25 minutes was outstanding and they schooled us if I’m honest,” said Smith, whose side ended up with nothing to show for McGinn’s 20-second strike.
“I thought for half an hour that’s as good as I’ve seen them, their passing and movement. At times, Phil Foden was on another planet and it was tough.
“Sometimes you have to applaud the opposition.”
“I’d be amazed if (City won’t win the Premier League title). I know Leeds did well against them and Chelsea in the semi-final but, for 30 minutes, they were incredible. That puts them 11 points ahead of Man United… That’s too much of a mountain to climb.”
Rodri was the unlikely hero for City in the end, glancing home the winner just four minutes before John Stones was shown his marching orders for a rather wild challenge on Jacob Ramsey.
Cash’s own red card, however, meant that Villa’s man advantage didn’t last long.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
