Matty Cash proves worth to fire Villa past Middlesbrough

Matty Cash's late winner saw Aston Villa progress to the fourth round of the FA Cup as they beat Middlesbrough 1-0.

Carabao Cup semi-finalists Boro were denied another cup run when Cash's deflected strike found the bottom corner in the 87th minute.

FULL MATCH DETAILS

The Premier League side had threatened from corners in the second half and a set-piece ultimately proved to be Boro's undoing as Unai Emery's side prevailed.

The first chance of the contest fell to Villa when Boubacar Kamara flicked the ball to Jhon Duran, who cut in from the left and fired towards the bottom corner but goalkeeper Tom Glover stuck out a leg to turn the ball behind.

The visitors grew into the game and Alex Moreno caused problems with some dangerous crosses, one finding Cash who smashed the ball into the crowded Boro box.

Alex Bangura tried to catch Villa on the break with some good balls through to Josh Coburn and posed a threat after latching on to a great cross-field ball, but Villa were able to clear.

The game suddenly sprung into life in the 32nd minute when Jacob Ramsey's powerful shot was deflected over the bar and Leander Dendoncker narrowly headed over from the resulting corner.

Duran then forced a great save from Glover and Boro raced up the other end of the pitch as Dan Barlaser threaded the ball to Morgan Rogers, but Emiliano Martinez managed to palm it away for a corner.

The hosts had a great chance just on the cusp of half-time as Bangura fired a dangerous cross across the box, but neither Coburn nor Isaiah Jones could stab home.

A frenetic opening to the second half saw Glover make a fantastic save just four minutes in as a short corner allowed John McGinn to unleash a powerful strike on the edge of the box, but the goalkeeper tipped