Marcus Rashford continued his resurgence as Aston Villa claimed a convincing 3-0 win at Brighton to boost their top-four hopes and European ambitions.
The on-loan Manchester United forward, who scored twice in Villa’s FA Cup quarter-final victory at Preston on Sunday, netted his first Premier League goal for the club six minutes after half-time. Rashford finished with composure following a counter-attack from a Brighton corner, racing from his own half before lifting the ball over goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen.
Brighton thought they had equalized immediately when Simon Adingra bundled home, but VAR disallowed the goal for Kaoru Mitoma’s handball in the build-up.
Villa sealed their victory when substitute Marco Asensio, on loan from Paris St-Germain, fired home an emphatic drive 12 minutes from time after unselfish work from Morgan Rogers. In the dying moments of 10 added minutes, another substitute, Donyell Malen, added a third with his first goal for the club.
Under Unai Emery’s guidance, Rashford has been gradually rebuilding his confidence after a difficult spell at Manchester United. The 27-year-old showed high-quality touches throughout the match, troubling the Brighton defense from wide positions and earning regular encouragement from his manager on the sidelines.
Rashford received a standing ovation from the traveling Villa fans when substituted after 65 minutes, marking another positive step in his revival away from Old Trafford.
Brighton, who suffered an FA Cup quarter-final defeat on penalties to Nottingham Forest on Saturday, appeared to feel the effects of that extra-time encounter. They struggled for spark and ultimately ran out of steam, with the home fans expressing their frustration with scattered boos at the final whistle.
The result moves Villa above Brighton into seventh place in the Premier League table. With an FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace and a Champions League quarter-final against PSG on the horizon, Emery’s side continue to compete on multiple fronts.
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.