Latest Aston Villa transfer news as Man United loan recruit ponders future amid talk of £40m fee but £325,000-a-week wages stumbling block
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Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford
Aston Villa's Marcus Rashford(Image: PA)
“Best in the business” Marcus Rashford has been told he could walk into any team in the world - but also warned that he will struggle to find a new club this summer.
Aston Villa have a £40m option to sign the Manchester United outcast when his loan ends in a few weeks, yet it remains unclear whether player or club see his future at Villa Park.
The 27-year-old has scored four goals in 17 games since joining Villa in January, but his estimated £325,000-a-week salary looks like being a stumbling block to a future away from Old Trafford, or anywhere else.
With Rashford himself reported to believe United will sell him to anyone this summer for £40m - not just Villa - his future was debated by Dion Dublin, Michael Brown, Andros Townsend and presenter Darren Fletcher on BBC Radio 5Live’s Premier League kick-off show.
A hamstring injury he suffered in the build-up to Villa’s FA Cup semi-final defeat by Crystal Palace means he will not play again this season. But it is the future of arguably one of the biggest talents in the English game over the past few seasons, until he lost his way at Old Trafford, that has sparked plenty of arguments amongst Villa and United fans - and on Friday night’s show.
Former Spurs midfielder Brown told listeners: “I think there's going to be some takers. I think he did well enough. He got that run going at Villa and he was smiling again. He looked a bit fresher, looked a bit sharper.
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“You've got to remember that the games he was coming in for with Villa were really big ones that meant something, so I feel like his stock went up.
“Could he go back to Manchester United? I think it's going to be difficult when the manager's just sort of gone, ‘see you later’ like that. I think that is a huge problem for him.
“With his talent, with what he's got, there's got to be some serious takers. But what they're also going to know is that Manchester United are desperate. So everyone's just going to sit back, wait and test their mettle. They're not going to be in a rush.”
Townsend, the former Tottenham and Crystal Palace attacker, added: “A lot of clubs will want Marcus Rashford, but how many can afford the salary he’s on at United with PSR and what have you?
“How many clubs, especially in the Premier League, can afford to pay Marcus Rashford that? If we're talking £300,000 a week, which is what's reported, how many club clubs can pay that.”
But it was former Villa striker Dublin who put the strongest case for clubs wanting to sign Rashford - while also explaining why there was a huge issue likely to prevent any deal.
He said: “The boys in the game itself and people around football are never going to question his talent. We know what he's like.
“The question is, what else comes with Marcus Rasford. What is the the baggage that you are taking on board - the £325,000-a-week and all that.
“So we say where could he go? Marcus could play for any 11 players in any club anywhere around the world if he's on it.
“He's the best in the business when he's on it down the left-hand side, so wherever he wants to go, he's the talent. He's outstanding. We know what Marcus can do. We’ve seen him in the Premier League, we've seen him in in full flow.
“So I think a lot would take him, but it’s the money and its the baggage that comes with Marcus. Everyone says he’s smiling again, but we shouldn't have to think about somebody smiling. He's playing the best game in the world, he's got the best job in the world. Enjoy your football, son, go and play and enjoy it.”
Fletcher questioned whether even Villa had seen enough from Rashford to consider spending £40m on a fee and then take on his huge wages, considering sources close to the player insist he has no intention of taking a pay cut. He added: “If it's a Barcelona and they take him for a year on loan as one of their rotational pieces, I can see it happening because it hasn't got to work.
“But if you're one of those clubs that's going to spend £40m and make him your highest earner, it has to come off. You've got to be confident that you are going to get the very best Marcus to be prepared to do the deal deal.
“Then how do you manage him? What's going to make him happy? He doesn't want to sit on the bench, that's clear, so how do you manage him, the personality and the people that comes with it?
“To me, it all points to a loan deal.”
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