‘Woah!’ - Aston Villa star handed ‘surreal present’ from Lionel Messi after World Cup clash

Aston Villa star Matty Cash was absolutely delighted after he helped Poland reach the World Cup round of 16 on Wednesday night, but there was an extra treat waiting for him which made matters even better. Celebrations sparked at the full-time whistle as, despite a 2-0 defeat to Argentina, Poland went through in second place on goal difference.

Mexico failing to beat Saudi Arabia by a three-goal margin meant it would be Cash’s side going through instead and to celebrate, Villa teammate and Argentina goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez gave him a moment to remember forever. “I tell you the best thing about it was, right, at the end of the game Emiliano came up to me,” Cash told talkSPORT.

“[Emiliano] was like, ‘Cashy I’ve got you a present’, and I was like, ‘what could this be?’. He said to follow [him] into the tunnel, so I’ve got into the tunnel with him and he’s going into the changing room. He said, ‘wait there’. Then he walked out with Messi’s shirt for me. It was amazing, it doesn’t get much better than that.

“Seeing him in real life up close, I think he walked past me at half-time and I was like, ‘woah, that’s Messi’. It’s surreal [getting through] and it’s an amazing moment to make history. It’s been 30-odd years since the last qualification at a World Cup for the country, so it was an amazing day. I’m really looking forward to facing Mbappe!”

As Cash alluded to, Poland will be taking on World Cup holders France in the next stage - the round of 16. Cash is likely to start the game, which kicks off at 3pm on Sunday, December 4. Martinez and Argentina, meanwhile, will play Australia at 7pm on Saturday, December 3.