Sir Jim Ratcliffe delivers Marcus Rashford verdict, supports Ruben Amorim's hardline Man United decision

Rashford scored the very first goal of the Amorim era at the end of November, but he quickly fell out of favour under the Portuguese and was eventually exiled from the first-team squad.

After being dropped for the Manchester derby in December, Rashford revealed that he was "ready for a new challenge" and has not been seen in a Red Devils shirt since, after Amorim cited underwhelming performances in training and general behaviour around the club as his reason against selecting the forward.

The 27-year-old academy graduate had spent his entire career at Man United, before leaving in the January transfer window and securing a loan move to Aston Villa, where he has made eight appearances in all competitions.

Rashford is yet to score for Unai Emery's side, but he has chipped in with three assists, including two during an impressive 45-minute substitute cameo in Villa's 2-1 comeback win over Chelsea last month.

Ratcliffe suggests Rashford was 'not fully committed' to work under Amorim

Ratcliffe has now addressed Rashford's departure from Man United and has discussed why Amorim made the decision to exclude him from his first-team squad.

The 72-year-old British billionaire was asked during an interview by BBC Sport what he made of the radical stance Amorim took with Rashford and whether he supported the Man United boss.

He replied: "Yep. Because he wants a dressing room that is full of people who are totally committed to winning football matches. He won't tolerate people who don't have 100% of that attitude."

Asked if Amorim's decision to exclude Rashford was about a culture the Portuguese intended to create in his squad, Ratcliffe added: "Yes. That's Ruben, and the players have to be in the same box."

Ratcliffe "pleased" Rashford joined Aston Villa

Ratcliffe is "pleased" that "very talented footballer" Rashford has made the move to Aston Villa to reignite his career following a challenging period at Old Trafford.

Asked if he was frustrated to see Rashford performing well at Aston Villa, Ratcliffe said: "No, I am pleased. He's moved out of Manchester and maybe that's a good thing for him.

"I am very pleased he is doing well. It's good to see because he has got tremendous talent, but for whatever reason it wasn't working in Manchester for the past couple of seasons, but he is a very talented footballer, Rashford."

Rashford's long-term future remains unknown, but it has been reported that the England international is determined to complete a permanent move to Aston Villa this summer, despite alleged interest from Barcelona.

Written by

Oliver Thomas