The Scout looks at the Fantasy Premier League potential of summer signings ahead of the 2020/21 season.
Matty Cash (AVL) £5.0m
Aston Villa’s new right-back has been one of the most attack-minded defenders in the Championship in the last two seasons.
Cash scored nine goals and supplied six assists in his 67 starts for Nottingham Forest.
The 23-year-old's underlying numbers last term further highlight his all-round potential going forward.
His 44 shots would have ranked joint-top with Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold (£7.5m) among FPL defenders.
And his total of 46 chances created was bettered by just three defenders.
Indeed only Jack Grealish (£7.0m), who supplied 91 key passes, was more creative among Dean Smith's players.
Cash's first Villa interview
Encouragingly for Villa, Cash also impressed defensively last season.
He won 75 per cent of his tackles, a ratio bettered only by the 83.3 per cent of Tyrone Mings (£5.0m) for Villa.
That could be vital for the Midlands club, who had the second-worst defensive record in 2019/20, conceding 67 goals.
Villa have a blank Gameweek 1, and their schedule after that is also likely to steer early interest away from their key players.
In the first five Gameweeks, they will face three of last season’s top nine sides: Sheffield United, Liverpool and Leicester City.
But a favourable run of opponents from Gameweek 6 could promote investment in Cash.
Home comfort
Villa then have four home matches in six fixtures, against Leeds United, Southampton, Brighton & Hove Albion and Newcastle United.
Crucially, they kept seven clean sheets at Villa Park last term, the same number as champions Liverpool and Manchester United.
When his attacking potential is added to the equation, Cash can bring in points at both ends of the pitch.
See: The Scout on new arrivals
Don't get caught out. GW1 deadline: 11:00 BST on 12 September. Register your team now at fantasy.premierleague.com.
