Marcus Rashford sent message by Unai Emery after scoring in Brighton win as Aston Villa boss reveals new plan for Man Utd loanee

The England international netted twice in Villa’s FA Cup victory over Preston North End, and he carried that momentum into the Premier League with a goal in Wednesday’s dominant 3-0 win against Brighton. Rashford’s contributions since joining Villa stand at three goals and four assists, a clear indication of his upturn in form.

Against Brighton, Ollie Watkins was left on the bench, allowing Rashford to lead the line as Villa’s central striker. However, Emery is now contemplating a tactical setup that allows both Rashford and Watkins to play together in the attack.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Emery said: "Keep going is the message for him. Playing more minutes means he’s getting physically better, he’s scoring more goals. We’re playing him as a striker and trying to compete with Watkins. Maybe going forward we can play them together. Try to exploit his [Rashford’s] qualities. He’s in the best confidence moment. On Sunday, we planned to play him as a striker, and he scored two goals, so I decided to go again and he scored."

Emery was then asked if Rashford can regain top form at Villa and told BBC Sport: "This is the challenge he has. And the challenge we have in our squad, signing him for those months, of course, he’s getting better, feeling confident, as well getting the understanding of our style, our demands, how difficult it is to face each team in each competition. Of course, his qualities, his skills are very important in the squad. Scoring goals, assists, we have the combination with the players, they are understanding better, each match we are playing for him is very important."

The Birmingham-based club will be looking to maintain momentum when they host Nottingham Forest on Saturday. Following that, they travel to France to take on Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final tie, a game where Rashford’s experience on the European stage could prove invaluable.