Who Aston Villa could sign instead of Marcus Rashford as the striker heads back to Manchester United.

Marcus Rashford has said farewell to Aston Villa and its supporters ahead of his summer return to parent club Manchester United.

The 27-year-old spent the second half of the season on loan at Villa and regained some of his best form before suffering a devastating hamstring injury. Rashford, signed merely hours before the winter transfer deadline, scored four goals and provided six assists in 17 appearances for the Villans, proving his worth after being outcast by Man Utd manager Ruben Amorim earlier in the campaign.

Villa included a £40 million option to buy Rashford in the loan deal but won’t be activating the clause as the 62-time England international doesn’t want to join a team without Champions League football. As much as Rashford was made to feel welcome at Villa Park, his priority is to continue playing at the very highest level.

Rashford, confirming his time at Villa has come to an end, recently posted a farewell on Instagram. “Just a message of thanks to everyone here at Villa for what has (injury aside) been an incredible few months for me,” Rashford wrote.

“It is a really special club and I appreciated the way Villa fans embraced me with open arms from first minute on the pitch. The manager, team, and coaching staff have all been brilliant. I know it is a huge disappointment not to have made the Champions League place which everyone worked so hard all season for but I know this club and team will come back stronger.”

It awaits to be seen whether Rashford has any future at Old Trafford as Amorim will continue as manager for the foreseeable future and the pair seemingly don’t see eye to eye. Widespread reports suggest Rashford will be available for the same £40 million fee Villa previously agreed if other clubs rear their heads.

Aston Villa can land brilliant Marcus Rashford alternative for free

Some Villa supporters will be gutted that Rashford won’t be signing permanently, but, at the end of the day, his wage demands were always unrealistic. Villa simply can’t afford to cough up around £350,000 per week on one player, so it was always going to be tricky to land Rashford for the long term – even if Champions League football was secured.

Who should Villa sign instead, then? Well, there’s one player Birmingham World believes would be a terrific alternative – and he’s already been linked with a move to Villa Park. Jonathan David, now heading into his prime, will be available for free this summer as he will be leaving LOSC Lille upon the expiry of his contract.

Although the Canada international is more of an out-and-out centre-forward or a shadow striker, whereas Rashford could also play on the left wing, David possesses similar attributes. The 25-year-old is very quick off the mark and is effective with his ball carrying, while he has a brilliant eye for goal.

This season just gone was David’s fifth in a row with at least 15 direct goal contributions in Ligue 1. In the past five campaigns combined, the striker has scored 87 goals and provided 16 assists in 178 French top-flight matches. Even better still, David has scored 10 goals in 18 career Champions League appearances, proving his worth in Europe’s elite competition.

Currently valued at around €45 million (£37.7 million) by Transfermarkt, the club that signs David this summer will be landing one of the deals of the summer. A player of his calibre is rarely available on a free transfer, and, behind Liverpool superstar Trent Alexander-Arnold, he’s the most valuable soon-to-be free agent in the world.

Competition would be fierce as the likes of Barcelona, Inter Milan, Juventus, Atletico Madrid Newcastle United, Chelsea, Man Utd, Tottenham Hotspur are all interested in signing David. But Villa shouldn’t even hesitate – they should make contact with the attacker’s representatives as soon as feasibly possible to present their project.