On-loan Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford has made a good start to life at Aston Villa (Image: Getty Images)

Marcus Rashford is only just finding his feet at Aston Villa after his late winter window move, but his performance during Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town will offer encouragement.

The on-loan Manchester United star performed well, with his free-kick playing a key role in Ollie Watkins’ equaliser after Ipswich took a shock lead. Rashford is yet to start for Unai Emery‘s team but will be relishing the chance to impress again when Villa face league leaders Liverpool at B6 on Wednesday (kick-off: 7:30pm).

Villa Park has offered a warm welcome to the 27-year-old who arrived in Birmingham alongside Yasin Ozcan, Axel Disasi and Marco Asensio in January. But what does the future hold for Rashford at Villa beyond this season? Below is a look at what has been said about the forward’s future.

Rashford transfer desire

Rashford reportedly remains keen on a move to Barcelona despite the Catalan club’s claims of not being overly eager to secure his signature in the recent transfer window. Discussions took place in January between Rashford’s agents and Barcelona, with the player hopeful for renewed interest come season’s end.

A source revealed to The Sun: “Marcus is confident that if he rediscovers his form at Villa Park and starts bagging goals, Barcelona will revive their interest, especially as a transfer price has been established.

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“It’s a huge incentive for him, which is good news for Villa. Now he just needs to get playing and start scoring.”

Adding to the narrative, Barcelona’s sporting director, Deco, commented earlier in the week on the Rashford speculation, stating: “It’s true there was talk of Rashford – but we weren’t desperately looking for a player either.”

Response to Villa result

Taking to Instagram, Rashford shared a winning mentality message after Saturday’s draw against Ipswich. “Unfortunately we couldn’t get the winner.,” he wrote on the social media platform.

Man United’s £40m clause

Rashford’s move to Villa includes an option to make the switch permanent for a reported £40million. The United academy graduate fell out of favour under Red Devils boss Ruben Amorim at Old Trafford, with the Portuguese manager feeling he was unable to adapt to the way he wanted to play and train.

“I couldn’t put Marcus to see the way you’re supposed to play football and to train the way I see it,” Amorim said. “And sometimes you have one player that is really good with one coach, and the same player with another coach is different.

“I just wish the best to Rashford and to Unai Emery, and they can connect because he’s a very good player.”