Marcus Rashford has shared what looks to be a farewell message ahead of his expected Aston Villa departure when his loan deal ends later this summer.
The 27-year-old arrived on loan from Manchester United in January and went on to contribute four goals and six assists in 17 appearances across all competitions.
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An untimely injury setback ended his campaign earlier than hoped, but there’s no doubt that he made an important impact and was a crucial spark for Unai Emery in the second half of the campaign in our pursuit of achieving key objectives.
Having failed to qualify for the Champions League though after our defeat at Old Trafford on the final day of the Premier League season, the expectation has been that Rashford wouldn’t stay on a permanent basis in the event that occurred, and although we’ve yet to hear official word from the club, it appears as though the England forward has said his goodbye on social media, as per his post below.
“Just a message of thanks to everyone here at Villa for what has (injury aside) been an incredible few months for me. It’s a really special club & I appreciated the way Villa fans embraced me with open arms from the 1st minute on the pitch. Manager, team & coaching staff have all been brilliant. I know it is a huge disappointment not to have made the Champions League which everyone worked so hard all season for, but I know this club & team will come back stronger.”
It’s to be expected given his high wages and the transfer fee involved to sign him outright, as Villa likely now face a difficult summer with tough decisions ahead on how we can not only improve Emery’s squad, but balance that with our PSR concerns and constraints.
Signing Rashford without Champions League revenue ultimately isn’t doable it seems, and while the club could yet decide otherwise if the pieces fall into place to allow a swoop to happen, it doesn’t sound as though Rashford will be with us ahead of next season, as that will likely be at the forefront of his mind and ambition moving forward to play in the top competition.
Some will perhaps be disappointed that he’s immediately confirmed his apparent intention to move on after our disappointment this past weekend, but ultimately all involved knew the situation and what it would take to continue our journey together, and so now it’s hoped that Monchi and the rest of the Villa recruitment team can fill that void this summer to give Emery an important alternative option and additional firepower to ensure we’re increasingly competitive.
Marcus Rashford on Instagram 👊🏽🟣🔵
#avfc #UTV
— Talk Villa (@talkvilla.bsky.social) May 26, 2025 at 9:39 AM
