Marcus Rashford, the banished Prince of Manchester United, came to the place where football players mix with real royalties.
While he tries to put his career on the right track again, Rashford needs a period of distraction and he could hardly have found a better location.
Located in the countryside of North Warwickshire, the training base of Aston Villa near the village of Bodymoor Heath is so remote that even the future king can visit without anyone noticing it.
The Prince of Wales is a huge Villa fan and has recently viewed the sessions of Unai Emery Lead First team, as well as attending many of the European luminaires of Villa in the past two seasons. He will see Rashford in action again in the largest phases.
Ruben Amorim has refused to choose Rashford and the predecessor Erik ten Hag of the United Boss noted last September about the 'lifestyle' of the attacker and 'professionalism'.
There was the incident in November 2023, when Ten Hag said Rashford had apologized after he was seen in a nightclub after a defeat in the Manchester Derby.
And in February 2024 he was omitted outside the team for a FA Cup -similar game against Newport when he missed the training after he was excluded until the early hours in a Belfast bar. But Rashford is hardly the only player whose career has been stuck at United lately.
A lot was made on social media of the 27-year-old appearance in photos when he signed for Villa, but it can be revealed that when Rashford's body fat was measured, his results were the fourth best in the villa. He would have trained very well this week.
Emery demands total dedication of his players and will have been interested in signing up the use of Cryotherapy from Rashford to support the recovery, with his own room at home.
Emery believes that he can be one of the most effective attackers in the world and to breathe new life into his career, Rashford would be wise to follow the example of Jack Grealish.
The attacker of Manchester City has had his part of the scratches outside the field, but during his time in Villa, Grealisk made himself a £ 100 million player. The football world knew the talent of Grealish, although not much witnessed the hard work that helped him to fulfill it.
The Bodymoor security personnel certainly did that. More than once, when they traveled around the training field to close it in the evening, they would still find the lights in the fitness fassion team still while Grealish was working away, long after his teammates had left. Without that dedication, it is doubtful that he would ever have come to City, let alone win seven trophies there.
It is now up to Rashford. He has the perfect setting, a supporting fan base and, in Emery, a striker Whisperer for a manager. The Villa Baas has successfully worked with countless attackers and is convinced that he can do the same with Rashford.
Emery has made clear what he expects from his players. “Your lifestyle outside the club is reflected on the inside,” he said. “The mentality is to think of football and to show a high dedication to your club and your teammates.”
Compare that with the farewell shot of Amorim on Thursday. “I couldn't show Marcus how you should play football and train to train as I see it,” said the United Boss.
If Rashford can adapt to Emery's requirements and can only concentrate on his work, he and Villa can have a memorable end of the season. He could even survive Amorim at Old Trafford, must continue to struggle United. It promises to be an eventful few weeks.
It was a phone call from Emery in the last days of January that Rashford convinced to move to Villa Park. It is just as important that Emery heard Rashford's answers he wanted.
During that discussion, Rashford would have been modest and focused, and explained that his only wish is now to have a new start, away from United, and to play regularly.
Emery is one of the most demanding coaches in the Premier League and explained to Rashford that he would not be here for an easy ride. Again, Rashford would be impressed by his reaction. Villa is convinced that he has the ambition and is a drive to reach the top.
Rashford arrived in Bodymoor Heath last Sunday to complete the formalities of his move, a loan agreement until the end of the season, as a result of which Villa paid up to 90 percent of its wages of £ 315,000 a week. He had conversations with Villa's team of nutritionists and completed a short session in the gym.
The Villa -Staff interfered to see Rashford opt for the No 9 shirt that was left by Jhon Duran, who moved to the Saudi Pro League Club at the end of the window Al Nassr.
The sweater bears weight: Peter Withe was wearing it when he scored the most famous goal of the club – the winner in the European Cup final of 1982 – and Andy Gray, Dean Saunders and Juan Pablo Angel also had it. Villa loves their attacking players to wear 'traditional' figures and was happy that Rashford accepted responsibility.
After a tiring recent schedule, Emery released the first team on Monday and Tuesday, although Rashford still chose to travel to Bodymoor on Monday to train alone.
He did some sprinting with and without the ball and underwent another gym session with a fitness coach. For a player whose judgment has been doubtful recently, this was a cunning step.
Villa also expects Rashford to be mainly located in the West Midlands, instead of commuting daily from Manchester. Both the attacker of England and fellow loaner Marco Asensio, who joined Paris Saint-Germain, have viewed apartments in the region.
When Rashford really spends Most of the next four months from Manchester, it feels like a new sensible step. The rush hour on the M6 is not fun and with Villa players who are expected to report to the training field at 9.30 am, a daily 150-mile return would be far from ideal.
Duran, who scored twice on his Saudi Pro League debut on Friday, could be a complicated character. Until now, Rashford was anything but with club staff who describes a calm, friendly young man. The presence of former England colleagues Ollie Watkins, Tyrone Mings and Ross Barkley should also help Rashford to settle.
Players have breakfast together and the training starts from the middle of the morning. Rashford worked with his new colleagues in the second half of this week with Emery who led the sessions in his inimitable style – stopping exercises and physically moving players to the exact place where he wants them. The afternoon video meetings are just as demanding.
In his office in Bodymoor and with his familiar laptop, Emery Rashford has already spoken about how he sees it.
Emery believes that his best position works the left wing, although it can also be used by the middle – especially because Watkins will miss the collision of Sunday with Tottenham due to injury.
If he plays as a NO9, Rashford will be asked to operate on the width of the penalty area, instead of encountering the channels.
Emery has explained that a Villa Center-Forward has two main courses. When they play like a back four, he has to fall past the No. 10 – usually Morgan Rogers – so that the wing players can stay tight to the touchlines.
When they build as a back, the middle goes forward to an Orthodox No. 9 position, with one of wing players who move inside to occupy the space he has left.
He is expected to link the piece to his fellow attackers and the first to enter the penalty area when Villa comes close to the goal and stay in the width of the six-year box.
As a winger, Rashford would largely be asked to stay wide, to take the full-back when he receives the ball and shoots himself on his right foot in the shooting positions.
So Rashford knows the plan and he will know that it worked earlier. Emery works for hours of individual attackers, focuses heavily on positioning and improving their tactical concept.
He has worked with some of the world's best attackers, from Kylian Mbappe and Neymar to Edinson Cavani, David Villa and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.
More importantly, he has persuaded career-best displays from players without the natural talent of those superstars. Many fans in England will not be familiar with Jonas Goncalves, Artiz Aduriz, Kevin Gameiro, Carlos Bacca or Gerard Moreno, but they have supplied for Emery – just as Watkins has in Villa, with 52 goals and 26 assists in 112 games under Emery.
What they can also say publicly, Villa knows that these movements on both sides entail risks. An unguarded remark from Rashford in his opening interview with the club channels-it is clear that it was only in the short term I am '-perhaps revealed the reason behind this movement.
Villa acknowledges that if Rashford and Asensio were at the top of their game, they would probably have been out of their reach. The departure of 21-year-old Duran means that Villa should find a new, young no. 9 and they did not believe they could find one in the market in January.
The club also knows that if the couple helps them to qualify for next season's Champions League, or even go all the way in this season, they will bring villa into a much stronger financial position and at the same time restore their own reputation. We scratch your back, you scratch us. There are stimuli on both sides.
Rashford trained with United in January, but brought the most looking for an exit. His camp kept up for a loan movement to Barcelona and still believes that this can be an option next summer, although the Spanish giants have financial limitations and with a front three from Lamine Yamal, Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha, it is not easy to see Where Rashford would fit in.
There are other scenarios. Although there is a purchase option of around £ 40 million for the loan agreement, it seems possible that relevant parties can even agree that Rashford will be publishing on loan in Villa next season.
And if he shines as United Plallmet, Rashford can even return to Old Trafford to be greeted by a new man in the Dugout. However, if he is struggling, Villa will look somewhere else and Rashford will be back where he started, the route unclear.
Dealed about his lack of team depth, Emery attacked for a volume to encourage the twin requirements of domestic and European football.
Rashford will compete with Rogers, Watkins, Asensio, Donyell Malen, Leon Bailey and Jacob Ramsey for three or four places. None of them, except perhaps for Rogers, can expect to be an automatic choice. Emery admitted on Friday that the arrival of Rashford has already pressed colleague January and signed from the Champions League Knock -Knock -Rounds from Villa.
Rashford earned his huge contract thanks to a season of 30 goals in 2022-23, but he has found it difficult to justify it since then. All the while the attitude of the 27-year-old has done little to erase the impression that he would rather be somewhere else than United.
Now he has his wish. Not long after he was taught by Amorim for the Manchester Derby in December, Rashford said he was ready for 'a new challenge'.
Villa will certainly offer that. In February 2016, 18-year-old Rashford announced his talent to the world with four goals in his first two United performances, against Midtjylland and Arsenal. He scored four months later on his debut in England.
Almost a decade later, Villa needs a similar impact of the beginning. It now falls to Rashford to prove that he can deliver.
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