Marcus Rashford Man Utd exit could crumble after Ornstein drops Aston Villa bombshell

Marcus Rashford’s chances of joining Aston Villa permanently may have taken a big hit after David Ornstein revealed that the Manchester United loanee has suffered a season-ending injury.

Rashford left boyhood club Man Utd in January after failing to impress head coach Ruben Amorim and subsequently being frozen out by the Portuguese. The forward weighed up his options before landing at Aston Villa on loan.

Unai Emery’s side have the option to sign Rashford permanently this summer for £40million (€47m / $53m).

Rashford has impressed during his spell at Villa, chipping in with four goals and six assists in 17 matches. The Englishman also looked sharp during Villa’s Champions League exit at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.

Emery and his coaching staff have been pleased with Rashford’s improvement, though a summer move to Villa Park could now collapse for the player.

The Athletic’s Ornstein has revealed that Rashford ‘is expected to miss the remainder of Villa’s season with a hamstring injury’.

The West Midlands outfit still need to complete further tests to discover the true extent of Rashford’s issue. While the 27-year-old is not expected to require surgery, it is unlikely that he will play for Villa again this campaign.

What makes his return even less likely this season is the fact Villa travel to United in their final game of the season on May 25, as Rashford is ineligible to face his parent club.

Rashford will do his rehabilitation at Villa with the aim of getting back fit in time for England’s games against Andorra and Senegal in June, should he be selected.

While Ornstein states that Rashford’s long-term future with Villa ‘remains open’, he adds that the injury certainly makes the situation ‘more complex’.

Emery and Villa see Rashford’s return to his best as a ‘work in progress’. But this injury setback makes his permanent signing even more of a risk.

Rashford had displaced Ollie Watkins as Villa’s main striker, with Emery opting to play him centrally rather than on the left flank.

Watkins admitted he was ‘fuming’ to be left out of the starting eleven for Villa’s two games against PSG, with Rashford taking his place, though he will now return to the fold.

Rashford was absent for Villa’s FA Cup semi-final defeat to Crystal Palace over the weekend, with Emery saying he will be out for ‘some weeks’.

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Ruben Amorim ‘pleased’ about Marcus Rashford upturn

Ahead of Man Utd’s 1-1 draw with Bournemouth, Amorim was asked about Rashford’s performances. He replied: “All the players that are on loan, they will return and then the club will decide what to do at the end of the season.

“Yeah, of course (I am pleased about their form). The talent of Rashford, the talent of Antony, all these players, they have to put that on the team. So we are really happy because if you put a player on loan, the best thing for us is for them to perform and they are performing.”

Rashford could return to Man Utd this summer if Villa decide it is too risky to sign him permanently.

Although, it is highly unlikely he will be reintegrated into the squad under Amorim’s watch.

Numerous sources including Fabrizio Romano have reported that Amorim has no plans to utilise Rashford as he would rather the club sells him this summer.

Sources have confirmed to TEAMtalk that Rashford still dreams of joining Barcelona in the future, having failed to secure such a move in January.

It was claimed last week that Barca are preparing a £34m bid for the 62-time England international.

Man Utd transfers: Striker update; Bayern link

Meanwhile, Chelsea have stepped aside and allowed United to swoop for an elite striker – though it may not be that simple.

Harry Kane is not the only Bayern Munich star United are monitoring.

They are also keen on a £43m ‘monster’ who could leave Bavaria after just two years.

Rashford at Aston Villa: The timeline

By Samuel Bannister

February 2: Aston Villa announce the addition of Rashford on loan for the rest of the season

February 9: Unai Emery gives Rashford his Villa debut as a substitute in an FA Cup game against Tottenham

February 22: Rashford provides two assists to Marco Asensio to help give Villa a 2-1 win over Chelsea

February 28: Rashford adds another assist, again to Asensio, in an FA Cup win over Cardiff City

March 4: Emery selects Rashford as a starter for his first Champions League appearance since November 2023 as Villa beat Club Brugge

March 12: Rashford gets an assist in the second leg against Club Brugge as Villa qualify for the Champions League quarter-finals

March 14: Thomas Tuchel names Rashford in his first England squad, 12 months since his previous international cap

March 21: Rashford starts against Albania in Tuchel’s first game in charge of England

March 30: Playing as a striker, Rashford scores his first two goals in a Villa shirt in an FA Cup quarter-final win over Preston

April 2: Rashford’s first league goal for Villa quickly follows in a win away at Brighton

April 15: Villa are eliminated from the Champions League, but Rashford gets an assist in a second-leg win over PSG

April 22: Rashford scores in a league defeat to Manchester City, but suffers an injury which is expected to rule him out for the rest of the season – thus ending his loan spell with four goals and six assists from 17 games