New signing can be a “masterstroke”, says ex-striker turned pundit.
Former Aston Villa centre-forward Garry Thompson believes a fresh start could be just what Marcus Rashford needs to reignite his career.
Rashford fell out of favour with new Manchester United boss Ruben Amorim, who says he could not get through to the former England star. He even went so far as to suggest he would rather pick 63-year-old goalkeeping coach Jorge Vital on the bench over a player not “giving the maximum everyday”.
Rashford, 27, spent almost two months without being named in a matchday squad despite the club’s on-field struggles. Speculation has raged over Rashford’s future during the past few months and the saga is finally over after the forward, who scored 30 goals during the 2022/23 campaign, penned a loan deal until the end of the season at Villa Park.
“He’s got a point to prove because they feel [Rashford’s camp] that he’s been picked on a little bit. Obviously he’s on a lot of money and they wanted him out,” Thompson told SportsBoom.com.
“He hasn’t produced as much as he had a few years before. But, it’s a great opportunity for him.”
“The manager, Ruben Amorim, made it plainly clear that Marcus Rashford isn’t going to play for him. Even to the extent of the comment about the goalkeeping coach. If I’m trying to sell my player it’s not the right way to go about it because you’re pushing the value down every time you open your mouth about him.”
“Marcus Rashford has got a great opportunity now. For him, he’s putting himself in the shop window; not just for us but for Barcelona or any other team that might be out for him. Everyone wants to see the Marcus Rashford of two or three years ago. If we get anywhere near that player consistently then Villa have done well out of it and Marcus Rashford will have done well out of it as well because he will have a few clubs after him come the end of the season.”
Thompson, who starred for Villa during the 80s, was surprised at Villa’s interest in the struggling star. But it could end up being a masterstroke from Unai Emery with the club getting a player with a point to prove and undoubted quality.
Thompson added: “Initially when I heard about it, I wasn’t particularly impressed. The Marcus Rashford I’ve seen over the last 18 months, I don’t think there will be too many buyers for him.”
“He did the interview, so he was obviously looking to leave. It sounded like he had somewhere to go and then nothing happened. He’s not going to play for Man United at the minute. Hopefully Unai can get a tune out of him and Unai’s very good at that.”
“Even though he’s on a lot of money, we’re basically paying £5 million to get through to the summer and if Marcus Rashford’s not the one, you’ve got time to look around and get another centre forward. If he doesn’t produce you’ve only lost £5million, but if he’s half the player we’ve seen two years ago then he’s a great signing.”
“From a dressing room point of view, an England international has walked into the camp so that naturally raises the game of the other players in the squad because you’ve got to compete with him.”
