Man Utd legend Wayne Rooney insists that Marcus Rashford still “wants to play” for the Red Devils after watching his “fantastic” display for Aston Villa in the Champions League against Paris Saint-Germain.
The Villans looked well out of sight on 27 minutes aagainst PSG as the French side took a 5-1 lead on aggregate after two early goals from Achraf Hakimi and Nuno Mendes.
But Aston Villa rallied with Youri Tielemans getting one back ahead of the interval before John McGinn and Ezri Konsa grabbed further goals to put Unai Emery’s side one goal behind.
They couldn’t quite get the equalising goal but another positive out of the night was Man Utd loanee Rashford looking back to his best on the big stage.
On Aston Villa coming up short on the night, Rooney said on Amazon Prime: “How they came out for the second half was excellent. They came out with a belief and an energy, they felt like they had nothing to lose.
“They will be proud with their performance but also really disappointed as well because the goals they conceded in the first half were really avoidable and that’s what cost them the tie.
“The goals they conceded in the first half were sloppy and nowhere near good enough at this level.
“That’s ultimately what has cost them.”
MORE MAN UTD NEWS ON F365
👉 Big Midweek: Arsenal in Madrid, Amorim and Man Utd’s ‘focus’, Ange faces sack, Nkunku
👉 Thierry Henry ‘bullied’ Man Utd kid in ’embarrassing’ Sky Sports segment
👉 Liverpool man who *must* leave, multiple Man Utd targets in Premier League transfer target XI
When asked if he thought Aston Villa had a chance after Konsa’s goal, Rooney replied: “100 per cent. They were on the front foot, PSG were rocked, they were rattled and Villa were going for them.
“I have to say, I have to give a massive shout out to Marcus Rashford. I thought he was fantastic, the Rashford we’ve seen over the years.
“His skill, his ability, getting at players, driving at players and then his awareness to pull the ball back.
“When this goal goes in, you can feel the atmosphere and the Villa players get that belief that they can get back in the tie.
“They probably just ran out of energy. They gave a lot to that 20 minutes and PSG saw the game out well.
“But it was a fantastic effort from all the Villa players, the fans got right behind them and, unfortunately, they just fells short.”
Man Utd allowed Rashford out on loan to Aston Villa in the January transfer window with their Premier League rivals reportedly having a £40m option to sign him in the summer.
But Rooney is convinced that the England international still wants to return to Man Utd if he can sort out his differences with Ruben Amorim.
Rooney continued: “I hope he goes back to Manchester United and performs like he did today.
“That’s what we all want to see as United fans. He wants to play for Manchester United, 100 per cent.
“He’s a United lad, but he needed to play and it was clear he wanted to play.
“Marcus Rashford, in an ideal world, would want to play and leave a legacy at United. If that’s possible, I don’t know, but that’s what I would love to see.”
READ NEXT: Champions League qualification race predictions: Chelsea ruled out and Newcastle are favourites
