Liverpool manager Arne Slot has backed Marcus Rashford to show that he is a “very good player” during a loan at Aston Villa, having fallen out of favour at Manchester United.

Rashford is yet to start for Villa after sitting out almost two months prior to the late January move, but has generally impressed in two substitute appearances so far.

The latter saw him brought on at half-time for Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town, and the likelihood is that the player will progress into a starter once his match fitness has returned.

The next task for Villa is a midweek game against Slot’s Premier League leaders, with pre-match build-up including some attention on Rashford.

Slot had only kind and complimentary words to say about the 27-year-old.

“The first time I faced Rashford in real life was in the USA tour last summer,” he explained, referencing a friendly Liverpool played against Manchester United in front of nearly 80,000 fans in South Carolina.

“I was really impressed. He’s a very good player, I hope for him he shows it at Villa but of course, not tomorrow. I would be completely surprised if a player of this quality isn’t going to show it in the upcoming months. He’s a very good player in my opinion.”

Having struggled for form consistently over 18 months since a 30-goal season in 2022/23, Rashford quickly fell foul of Ruben Amorim when the new head coach took over in November.

Rashford initially started brightly, but was surprisingly dropped for the Manchester derby in mid-December, after which he went public with a desire for a “new challenge”. Amorim repeatedly said the player wasn’t doing enough in training to warrant selection.

The Villa loan includes a £40m option to buy, which could see Rashford remain at the club on a permanent transfer. He said in the wake of the announcement that the ambition he saw from Villa was one of the motivating factors behind the move.