Marcus Rashford scored his first two goals for Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon against Preston North End in the FA Cup quarter-final and it has prompted ex-player Micah Richards to explain why Unai Emery is getting a better tune out of him than his last two managers at Manchester United.
Rashford has looked happier since leaving Man Utd for Aston Villa on loan in February, but he was still waiting for his first goal for the club. As it happened, his first two both came in quick succession on Sunday – one from open play and one from a penalty – as Villa knocked Preston out of the FA Cup to set up a semi-final against Crystal Palace.
Rashford was playing in a no.9 role for Villa, despite showing a preference in recent years for playing on the left wing. He was in the right place at the right time to make his impact on the cup tie.
Rashford notably fell out of favour at Man Utd under new head coach Ruben Amorim, but was struggling under his predecessor Erik ten Hag too.
Richards, though, believes Emery has a clearer plan that has enabled Rashford to come in and make an impact.
“The difference is Emery’s got a structure, he’s got a plan,” Richards said on the BBC‘s coverage. “Under Ten Hag, it was difficult, and the new manager Amorim is finding it difficult to put across exactly what he wants.
“When you’re playing a different formation, where’s he going to play, in one of the three positions, or is he going to play as a wing-back? It doesn’t really suit him.
“But this Villa system, you look at the stats, he’s doing remarkably well.
“He’s coming into an environment where everyone knows their jobs and he’s just adding his skill, pace and knowhow to that team.
“We’ve even seen when [Ollie] Watkins and [Donyell] Malen came on, they knew exactly what to do. The press didn’t stop.”
‘People were saying he would fail’
While we will have to wait to see what Rashford’s long-term future holds, he can achieve ‘special’ things under Emery, according to Richards – who even made a comparison to his own career.
“It was a big move for him going to Villa because a lot of people were saying he would fail,” Richards said. “A lot of people were saying he wouldn’t start well. But I think game by game, steadily he’s getting better, he’s more confident.
“He said in his interview that he’s playing better football, I think that’s down to the manager, the way Aston Villa play.
“You can see in his energy. When you’ve got a manager who believes in you, you can do special things.
“He scored against Preston, no disrespect to Preston, but you have to put the ball in the back of the net.
“His whole body language looks a lot better now and it feels like he’s confident. And when Marcus Rashford is confident, we’ve talked about him so much.
“I think when people are talking about him, they’re frustrated, because like me, didn’t live up to your potential, so much hype on you at the start of your career, you don’t sort of fulfil that, people are asking questions, but that’s the best way to shut people up.”
Latest Aston Villa headlines
📌 Aston Villa frontrunners to sign explosive Chelsea forward after Blues opt to cash in
📌 Icon makes Marcus Rashford to Real Madrid claim amid star’s Aston Villa revival
📌 Sources: Tottenham demands revealed as Aston Villa plot shock move for underperforming midfielder
VOTE: Should Villa buy Rashford?