Marcus Rashford - signed on loan (injured - out for season?)

[edgysatsuma89]

One thing that isn't to do with the press shit stirring is the effort he gives on the pitch, and I have definitely witnessed him down tools in the last season or so. Hopefully he works harder in a better, more suitable environment.

[tomd2103]

Emery is going to have a job on his hands moulding Watkins, Rogers, Ramsey, Rashford, Malen and Asensio (if we sign him) in to a unit. I don't think there's a middle ground here. We are going to either fire or look rusty. Maybe we've given up defending and will try and win 4-3. If this works we could have the most exciting end to a season in a long time.

I think Rashford will be Duran's replacement really.  If all are fit we could be looking at Ramsey / Rogers on the left, Tielemans / Rogers / Malen in the the 'number 10 role', Watkins / Rashford as the central striker and Asensio / Bailey on the right.

There is obviously scope for players to interchange positions there, but that's where I see everyone fitting in.

[JUAN PABLO]

May 25th will be interesting at least.

[cdbearsfan]

He won't be eligible to play.

[JUAN PABLO]

He won't be eligible to play.

damn     was hoping he would score to send them down

[Brazilian Villain]

May 25th will be interesting at least.

We'll be resting him ahead of the Champions League Final. Best for all involved.

*Plus he'd be ineligible to play.

[Somniloquism]

He won't be eligible to play.

damn     was hoping he would score to send them down

They would need a points deduction to even be close to going down the way the teams below them are.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Henry Winter absolutely nails it in that article (page 37), his first line summing up perfectly the situation. It's worth remembering Winter's was the journalist Rashford did his big interview with last month where he claimed he wanted a "new challenge".

'Aston Villa offers a fantastic relaunching opportunity for Marcus Rashford if he responds to Unai Emery’s demands in and out of possession'.

Amorim couldn't get him working out of possession, Rashford needs to realise it's Villa who are doing HIM a favour and Unai expects hard work from all players. Deliver and he will have a lot of people asking questions about Amorim; fail and you'll be finished and will end up at West Ham or Everton if you're lucky.

Fresh start. Give absolutely everything and enjoy your football.

Good luck, Marcus though luck will have very little to do with your success.

[eamonn]

If he hits it off with Watkins it could be a masterstroke, Ollie + Ings  / Ollie + Duran never came off. I think he gives us options formation wise, at some stage I can see us try 442 if Unai sees fit.

I thought 442 is the only system Emery DOES play! Slot said so and he's a better manager.

[Toronto Villa]

Unai Emery improves players – rebuilding Marcus Rashford should be a simple task
England international needs a reboot as he approaches his peak years and now finds himself working with a manager fit for the task

John Percy
02 February 2025 10:07pm GMT

Six years ago to this day, Aston Villa were battling out a 0-0 draw with Reading in the Championship. Now, under the spell of Unai Emery, they are signing Marcus Rashford who has opted to leave Manchester United because his new club can offer Champions League football.

These are heady times at Villa Park and the arrival of Rashford is further evidence of the transformational effect Emery has had on this historic club. Rashford has joined on an initial loan deal until the end of the season, with an option for Villa to sign the England international permanently for £40 million.

It is a huge investment from Villa, who are paying around 75 per cent of his wages which are understood to be £325,000 a week. It is also something of a gamble, despite Rashford’s past achievements and impressive CV with United and England.

The Rashford of 2025 needs a reboot. His reputation has been damaged by the past 12 months at United, where he has gone from being the club’s poster boy and homegrown star to an emblem of their malaise. It had even got to a stage where Rashford was booed by his own fans.

Ruben Amorim, the United manager, has made it perfectly clear that he has no future under him. His application in training has been in question – and that is one thing Emery will never tolerate.

What will Villa be getting from a player who will be 28 in October? He should be approaching his peak years, and if anybody can revive his Premier League career, it will be Villa’s manager. He has developed and improved so many players over the years that rebuilding Rashford should be a simple task.

You only have to consider the progress of Morgan Rogers over the past six months to realise that Emery’s best work is on the training pitches at Bodymoor Heath. He is incredibly meticulous and demanding. Video analysis will be at the forefront, and lengthy team meetings.

Rashford unquestionably has the ability and talent to emerge from a year of drift. Perhaps he just needs a change of scenery after so many months of underachievement at Old Trafford

Inevitably there will be huge scrutiny and pressure. There will also be questions over what position Rashford plays.

Though Ollie Watkins was taken off at half-time in the defeat at Wolves on Saturday with a muscle injury, he is expected to return soon.

Watkins has been employed as a lone forward in a fluid 4-3-3 formation, and the difficulty in playing both him and Jhon Durán together was a constant concern.

Durán departed last week for Saudi Arabia, in a £65 million move to Al-Nassr, and the view is that Emery clearly backed Watkins over the Colombian.

Career in desperate need of positive publicity
Rashford is likely to be utilised out wide, either on the left or right. He has played there before, and the freedom Emery allows his attacking players should liberate him. The prospect of Watkins, Rashford and Rogers playing together will be exciting for Emery. And that is before you even consider other attacking options such as Donyell Malen, Jacob Ramsey, Leon Bailey and, perhaps, Paris St-Germain’s Marco Asensio.

Rashford will need patience at first. He has not featured for United since a Europa League tie against Viktoria Plzen on December 12.

While he still harbours hopes of an England recall, the prospect of Champions League football at Villa will be a major incentive behind his move. Villa do not return to their European excursions until early March, when they play in the round of 16. By that time, we will know how the latest chapter in Rashford’s story is panning out.

Emery needs this to work, as Villa seek a spark to jump-start the second half of their season. They have won only two of their last seven league games and, at the moment, a top-four finish appears a stretch.

Rashford will hopefully realise that Villa are offering him a huge opportunity here. He needs to grab it. It is nowhere near the last-chance saloon, but his career desperately needs some positive publicity.

[sid1964]

It will be interesting to see how he does, I am surprised that we signed him but now he is here I do hope he is brilliant.

But it will be down to Rashford to show that he still wants and has the desire to play in the premier league, for a club that has aspirations to be amongst the top 4/5 this season and win the FA Cup!

[andyh]

I reckon I've missed all this evidence of him having an attitude problem. Maybe because I don't pay much interest to football outside of B6.

The first I heard of him being a trouble-maker was when the Man Utd manager started talking to the press about it this season. Sounded to me a bit like the Gerrard/Tyrone situation, which was a case of a manager forcing his ego on his players - unnecessarily and in public.

Do we know he has previously had an attitude problem? Or are we taking it at face value because it was claimed by a manager of Man Utd - a man who, by virtue of his position, *must* be a twat?

This is exactly where I am.
Despite the wall to wall media coverage of Yanited on a daily basis, I must admit that I all I hear generally is  the fact they are shit, their stadium is shit, their manager is shit and their owners are shit.

[manic-road]

Try before you buy is a good deal, a change of club could be a blessing for him.

[Brend'Watkins]

Welcome Marcus. I don’t care much for anything ManU but in his prime as a player he was unstoppable. Saying that, he should be in his prime now, hopefully we can rekindle his obvious talent. As a person, he’s first class from what I’ve read and heard.

[Demitri_C]

If someone  told me 12 months ago rashford would be coming villa i would have thought you were insane. Unbelievable

You’re happy with this?

Not really but he will get my 100 backing now he has signed. Hopefully  he will give  us the same on pitch and has a point to prove. He looks like he has put a little bit of timber which  i guess is natural having not played much football. Would be suprised if he starts vs spurs. Bench at best