Manchester United loanee Marcus Rashford suffered a late heartbreak as Aston Villa suffered defeat to Manchester City.
For the first time in his career, Marcus Rashford travelled to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City not wearing a Manchester United shirt.
Aston Villa suffered a 2-1 loss to the Premier League champions, with Matheus Nunes scoring a last-gasp winner in the 94th minute after Rashford scored from the penalty spot to draw Villa level.
It’s a result that could have serious ramifications for the Red Devils, with Villa falling behind in the race for Champions League qualification.
Villa have an option to buy Rashford for £40m this summer, but they are waiting until the end of the season to make their decision as it will depend on whether or not they qualify for the Champions League.
Marcus Rashford’s mixed performance for Aston Villa vs Man City
There have been some concerns about Rashford playing up front for Villa this season – something that will feel very familiar to United fans.
However, Unai Emery stuck with Rashford and started him as a sole striker for Villa away to Manchester City ahead of Manchester United target Ollie Watkins.
After going a goal down early on, Rashford scored his fourth goal for Villa from the penalty spot.
However, zooming out at his match statistics, it reveals that Rashford struggled in front of goal.
| Minutes played | 76 |
| Touches | 20 |
| Goals | 1 |
| Shots | 4 |
| Big chances missed | 3 |
| Dribbles completed | 0% (0/2) |
| Passes completed | 86% (6/7) |
| Duels won | 33% (2/6) |
Rashford missed three big chances against City and only completed six passes as he once again found himself isolated up front. As per SofaScore, he was Villa’s lowest-rated player at 6.2 despite finding the back of the net.
He failed to complete either of his two dribbles and lost possession six times.
Ruben Amorim will not regret Marcus Rashford loan
It is no secret that Manchester United have been struggling to score this season, which has drawn attention to the fact that Amorim froze Rashford out of the squad and also loaned out Antony over the winter.
Rashford has impressed at Villa since joining on loan, but Amorim will have zero regrets over his decision to let the 27-year-old leave.
There were major concerns over Rashford’s attitude at Carrington, and Amorim publicly questioned his effort in training without seeing a response.
READ MORE: Marcus Rashford gave Ruben Amorim his best gift with performance vs PSG, Man Utd big winners
Rashford’s goal output at Villa has hardly been outstanding, and hopefully a permanent deal can be struck in the summer that will boost the budget available to Amorim.
The chances of Rashford returning to United are slim, so a new home will have to be found for him in the summer whether that be Villa Park or somewhere else.
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