Aston Villa open talks to sign Man Utd outcast Rashford – Ornstein

Aston Villa have opened talks to sign Manchester United winger Marcus Rashford, according to David Ornstein.

The Birmingham club are considering a host of potential options for their forward line after agreeing a deal with Al-Nassr to sell Jhon Duran for a whopping €77 million, with bonuses thought to potentially take the fee to €90m.

Aston Villa have enquired into the availability of several attacking targets in recent days, including Mathys Tel, Joao Felix and Marco Asensio, with sporting director Monchi even publically confirming the interest in the latter two.

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However, now David Ornstein of The Athletic reports that Aston Villa have also opened talks to sign Man Utd outcast Rashford, who is still waiting to resolve his future after stating in December that he is ‘ready for a new challenge.’

Rashford has been linked with numerous clubs, most prominently Barcelona. However, the Catalans would first have to make room in their squad and they have so far failed to achieve this.

Aston Villa make Rashford move

Aston Villa are seemingly looking to exploit the situation and Ornstein reports that head coach Unai Emery has personally requested the club make an attempt to sign the England international.

Rashford is still thought to favour a move to Barcelona, his preferred destination, so Villa will have to do a fair bit of convincing before a transfer enters any advanced stages.

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Despite his preference, Ornstein writes that Villa could potentially be a ‘persuasive’ last resort for Rashford due to their presence in the Champions League last-16 and the financial boost that comes with it.

It has been claimed that Rashford could remain at Man Utd beyond the January window, but Ruben Amorim’s recent comments, stating that he would rather play his 63-year-old goalkeeper coach, make it doubtful that there is a way back for the 27-year-old.