Villa's Cash told "he has no right to be called up if he doesn't learn Polish"

Former Poland coach - and current football pundit - Tomasz Hajto was brutal in his judgement of Matty Cash. The 52-year old said that the Villa player should not be called up to the Poland national team until he learns Polish, deeming the fact that the defender is not able to sing the national anthem a disgrace. 

"I require a Polish international to speak Polish after two years," he said as he spoke to 'Cafe Futbol'. "If he doesn't learn, he has no right to be called up. When it comes to the national team of my country, this is the most important thing. I can't imagine a Polish person not being able to sing the national anthem. I don't like the situation when someone says they don't want to learn Polish because it's too late. It's never too late - I don't accept that."

Cash switched allegiance to play for Poland in 2021, obtaining the passport through his mum, who's Polish. Despite playing for Poland, Cash revealed that prior to switching national teams, he had never step foot in the country. “I’ve got relations in Poland but I’ve never been there," he said. "I only speak a few words of Polish but my mum speaks it fluently and she has been helping me brush up," he added. 

This is not the first instance Hajto has publicly criticised the Aston Villa player, as the two were involve in an online argument back in March. Hajto had criticised Cash for returning to Villa from international duty, following an injury he picked up in an Euro qualifier against Czech Republic. The former coach insisted that the 24-year-old should have committed to Poland and stayed in the camp to help the team ahead of their game against Albania. Cash responded to the crticism from Hajto via a tweet that read: "You talk absolute s**t'."

 

October 20, 2024