Marcus Rashford already planning for the future
Marcus Rashford is reportedly already planning his next move after Aston Villa, although the Manchester United frontman might end up facing ultimate disappointment.
The 27-year-old appears to have zero future at Old Trafford all the while Ruben Amorim remains in charge after the pair’s very public falling out. Indeed, that led to Rashford agreeing a deal to join Villa on loan last month in the search for some regular game time.
It’s reported that the England forward will weigh up his options again once his temporary spell at Villa Park is done, with three months to go before Unai Emery’s men decide if they want to pull the trigger on a permanent move.
However, a report in The Sun suggests that Rashford still has one eye on a switch abroad, despite Barcelona cooling their interest in the player during the winter window.
Talks between the player’s representatives and Barca were held in January – and Rashford is hopeful they will rekindle their interest at the end of the season and get him out of Man Utd permanently.
A source told The Sun: “Marcus is confident that if he rediscovers his form at Villa Park and starts bagging goals, Barcelona will revive their interest, especially as a transfer price has been established.
“It’s a huge incentive for him, which is good news for Villa. Now he just needs to get playing and start scoring.”
Barcelona sporting director, Deco, did admit that there was interest in Rashford last month, but hinted they were in rush to get their man when he said: “It’s true there was talk of Rashford – but we weren’t desperately looking for a player either.”
That appears to suggest that the Catalan giants might cool their interest altogether in the summer, depending on how events unfold over the next few months.
Rashford showing signs of life at Villa Park
Rashford has looked promising in his two cameo appearances since joining Villa, who negotiated a £40million purchase option into the loan deal they agreed with United earlier this month.
He caught the eye after coming on at half-time in Villa’s disappointing 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town on Saturday, playing a key role in Ollie Watkins’ equaliser when his excellent free-kick struck the crossbar and the England No.9 pounced on the rebound.
Indeed, both Rashford and Villa’s other late signing in the window, Marco Asensio, were singled out for praise by Emery during the Spaniard’s post-match interview with Match of the Day.
Emery said: “Good impact and keep going now, try to fit in as best as possible.
“We are playing against Liverpool here [next]. We lost some opportunities but of course we have to be consistent and hope we can react.”
Rashford has arguably done enough to earn a starting role against Liverpool, although it will be an interesting to see which route Emery goes against the current Premier League leaders in what should be a cracking contest.