Fans think Marcus Rashford sent a hidden message to Manchester United in his first interview at Aston Villa following his transfer.
Villa have completed the signing of Rashford, securing his services on an initial loan deal until the end of the season.
The deal includes an option to buy him in a permanent transfer for £40 million.
A minimum of 75 per cent of his wage will be covered by Villa, who have not paid a loan fee to Man United.
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AS Monaco are in something of a crisis heading into Tuesday night’s Champions League clash against Aston Villa. Despite being in the respectable position of fourth in Ligue 1, Adi Hutter’s side have only won one of their last eight matches in all competitions and that victory came against lower league side Union Saint-Jean in the French Cup. Excluding that routine 4-1 win, Monaco have only claimed victory in one of their last 10. Powered by Their young side hasn’t fully recovered from their last defeat to Benfica at home matchweek five of the Champions League league phase. They were winning 2-1 until goals from Arthur Cabral and then Zeki Amdouni turned the game around in the final stages. READ | Why Ollie Watkins ‘got a bit frustrated’ as striker closes in on Aston Villa history READ | Aston Villa’s dream transfer window as five sign and seven leave in January Then, following a defeat at Marseille and a win over Toulouse in the league, Monaco lost 3-0 at Arsenal in matchweek six. It leaves them 16th in the league phase table, but only three points behind Villa in fifth place. After that loss at the Emirates Stadium, Monaco played out a 0-0 draw with Reims before they suffered defeats to Paris Saint-Germain in the league and cup either side of beating Union Saint-Jean. Failure to beat Nantes and then being knocked out of the French Cup via penalties against Reims meant Monaco’s trip to Montpellier was a ‘must win’ to get them back on track. “I think this is the right match to motivate the whole team just before the Champions League,” Mohamed Salisu said before the game. “It is a very important match to get an energy boost and regain confidence in order to best prepare for the match against Aston Villa. We believe in ourselves and we want to take the three points. “We have no doubts, football is about ups and downs depending on the period. We are currently in a bad moment and we have to fight to get back to the top. The season had started very well and we were in good form, we just need to believe in what we are doing on the pitch and listen to the coach’s tactical advice to get back to our level.” But Monaco fell to a shock 2-1 defeat against Jean-Louis Gasset’s Montepellier and Hutter claimed the important match with Villa wasn’t in the minds of his players. Powered by “Today, it’s more than a big disappointment, it’s a real gut punch for us and everyone at the club,” Hutter said after full-time. “At the start of the season, the wins were stacking up, everyone was happy. I have been in professional football for 35 years as a player before and as a coach now. It is not the first time this has happened to me and the main thing I have learned is to stay positive, work on the details and help the team.” Asked if he thought that the Champions League match against Villa could have affected the team’s mentality, Hutter responded: “I don’t think so, I have the feeling that the team was completely focused on this match. You could see that in the first half, we wanted to make the difference quickly but we missed too many chances. In the second half, we wanted to score the second goal but we made an individual error. We then had no right to concede another goal. “We tried to come back after with several chances in the last minutes but it was too little. I have a lot of respect for Montpellier but we needed to impose ourselves to regain confidence. Tuesday will be a completely different match, it’s the Champions League at home, but I don’t think the team already had Aston Villa in mind.” What is your Monaco vs Villa score prediction? Tell us here READ NEXT: Louie Barry makes transfer decision as Aston Villa told he’s ‘ready’ to accept deal Aston Villa transfer news with latest on Garcia and Bade as trio could leave I visited huge new Midland charity shop and wished the previous store never shut down Marks & Spencer has £29.50 ‘best alternative’ to Levi’s that’s £80 cheaper Aston Villa favourite could join Premier League rivals Man City ‘on loan’ Story Saved You can find this story in My Bookmarks.Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right.
January 20, 2025
Several clubs were keeping tabs on the 27-year-old, including Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund.
But Rashford admitted Villa’s ambition made a move to the Midlands club an attractive proposition.
He also made a comment that has not gone unnoticed among Man United supporters on social media.
The star forward explained how it’s ‘only a short-term’ move to Villa, with fans convinced he’ll return to Old Trafford next summer.
“It’s a club that’s in a good position in the league, and they’re pushing to get higher. Still in the Champions League, a good, ambitious manager and great talent in the squad,” he told the club’s official website.
“I’ve had to choose somewhere where I feel my style of football is suited to, and can help them and help me rediscover and improve as a player.”
He added: “Obviously it’s only short-term I’m here, so I want to make the most of my time here, and the only way to do that is by using my attributes and my skillset to help the team.”
Marcus Rashford has joined Aston Villa on a loan deal until the end of the season. Image: Getty
Rashford’s ‘short-term’ claim got people online talking.
One X user wrote: “That last sentence sounds like he’s prepared to only be here for 6 months. Still though, let’s hope he performs and potentially he can stay.”
A second said: “‘It’s only short term’…”
A third argued: “The ending to the interview worries me. I don’t want Aston Villa to make players better to then go back to there parent club.”
Rashford joins Villa, having scored seven goals in 24 appearances across all competitions this season.
