The revival of Marcus Rashford is gathering pace. Rashford joined Aston Villa on loan in January after having been frozen out at Manchester United by Ruben Amorim. His new-found form earned an England recalled last week from Thomas Tuchel and he followed up with two goals in a 3-0 win which earned an FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace.
Villa were favourites to win away to Preston while their second-tier opponents dreamed of a typical cup upset. That dream lasted for a full 58 minutes before Rashford ended his four-month goal drought with a close-range conversion to a Lucas Digne cross. His last goal had been for United against Everton in December.
Five minutes later and Rashford was celebrating again after converting a penalty after a foul on new England team-mate Morgan Rogers. A third goal from Jacob Ramsey sent Villa into the semi-finals after a 10-year absence and maintained their dream of a first FA Cup triumph since 1957.
Rashford said: “I feel like I’ve been getting fitter and playing better football since I’ve been here. It’s always nice to get a goal so hopefully, it continues. We have to take it one game at a time but we are very ambitious. I think I can still get fitter. I missed a lot of football before joining up with Villa but my body feels good and I’m enjoying my football now.”
Rashford’s rediscovery of his appetite for football rewarded the faith of manager Unai Emery and extended Villa’s run to seven successive victories in all competitions. The injection of confidence is ideal ahead of 10 high-pressure days featuring a visit to Brighton on Wednesday, a home clash with Nottingham Forest and then Champions League trip to face Paris Saint-Germain.
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