Marcus Rashford attracted by Aston Villa’s ‘constant ambition’
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Manchester United's Marcus Rashford will be joining Aston Villa on loan till the end of the season.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MANCHESTER – Marcus Rashford said Aston Villa’s “constant ambition” attracted him to the club after he arrived from Manchester United on a loan deal until the end of the season.
The 27-year-old has not played for United since mid-December after falling out of favour with manager Ruben Amorim. He was linked with a move to AC Milan and Barcelona before finally making the switch to Villa Park on Feb 2.
Unai Emery’s side, eighth in the English Premier League, are eight points ahead of struggling United and have a Champions League last-16 clash to come in March.
Rashford said the club’s ambition and the prospect of playing in Europe’s top competition swayed him to make the move to Birmingham.
Villa reportedly have an option to buy the forward for £40 million (S$67.7 million).
“It’s an ambitious time for this club, and a great opportunity for me to join this team and help them keep pushing forward,” said Rashford, whose signing was announced by Villa late on Feb 2.
“I’m excited, can’t wait for the first training session and obviously the first game.
“(Emery’s) a top manager and what he’s done for the club since coming in is unbelievable. It’s the constant ambition which is attractive and why you want to join such a club. You want to keep improving year on year.”
Rashford, who joined United as a seven-year-old, scored the first goal of Amorim’s tenure in a 1-1 league draw with Ipswich Town in November and scored twice against Everton, but he was soon frozen out over concerns about his attitude.
He scored just seven goals in 24 appearances for United this season.
The England forward could make his debut when Villa meet Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup fourth round on Feb 9 and is focusing on recovering his best form.
“I’ve had to choose somewhere where I feel my style of football is suited and can help them and help me rediscover and improve as a player. Obviously, it’s only short term I’m here. So I want to make the most of my time here,” he said.
“I know I can hurt teams, I know when I’m playing at my best I can decide football games. That’ll be my only ambition and only goal, to help the team win more games, more points and hopefully create history.”
Villa have also signed Spanish fullback Andres Garcia from Levante and Dutch forward Donyell Malen from Borussia Dortmund earlier in the January window.
They are also close to signing versatile player Marco Asensio on loan from Paris Saint-Germain.
Brighton & Hove Albion have signed 19-year-old forward Stefanos Tzimas from Nurnberg for £20.8 million, but he will remain in Germany for the rest of the season.
They also sanctioned the loan exit of their own young striker, Evan Ferguson, 20, to West Ham United, where he will be reunited with former Seagulls boss Graham Potter.
Manchester City, meanwhile, have made a late attempt to sign Porto’s Spanish midfielder Nico Gonzalez.
Top-four rivals Chelsea look set to let 21-year-old midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka go out on loan to Dortmund, while forward Joao Felix nears an AC Milan loan move six months after re-joining the Blues.
The Portuguese’s imminent arrival is probably why Milan have let striker Alvaro Morata leave on loan to Galatasaray for €6 million (S$8.4 million) on Feb 3, six months after signing from Atletico Madrid. The Turkish side retain an option to make the deal permanent.
In a big-money move on Feb 3, Brazilian Wenderson Galeno has left Porto to join Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ahli for €50 million. AFP, REUTERS
