Marcus Rashford's reaction to Jadon Sancho's controversial comment on his Instagram post after his Aston Villa debut has been revealed.
Rashford made his first appearance in claret and blue colours on Sunday night, coming off the bench in the FA Cup fourth round victory over Spurs.
The 27-year-old took to the pitch for the first time since the middle of December, having been completely frozen out at Manchester United by Ruben Amorim, who cited issues with his effort and performance level in training.
Rashford was linked with a number of clubs, including AC Milan and Barcelona, but Villa were able to draft the England international in late in the transfer window and handed him the No.9 shirt.
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Rashford has signed on an initial loan, though Villa have the option to purchase him permanently for a fee of £40 million.
His cameo on Sunday was met with hug cheers from Villa fans, with Rashford looking sharp and with a point to prove after he entered the fray with fellow new signing Marco Asensio.
After the game, Rashford took to Instagram and shared a series of pictures of him from the game, complete with the caption: "Thank you for the warm welcome. Great team performance."
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His post was flooded with comments from former teammates and current colleagues, but it was the one-word message from Sancho which caused the biggest stir.
In the comments section, Sancho simply wrote: "Freedom!".
The former Borussia Dortmund man was quite publicly ostracised by Erik ten Hag at United following a post on social media where he refuted claims by the Dutchman.
Having been made to train and eat on his own after refusing to apologise, he briefly returned for pre-season before being loaned out to Chelsea, who have an obligation to buy him for around £25 million.
Rashford's thoughts on Sancho's comment
But though Rashford is friends with Sancho, the Daily Mail say that the England international is not best pleased with the remark.
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Citing sources from Rashford's camp, the outlet wrote that there are indications he "doesn't appreciate being dragged into his former United and England team-mate's apparent beef with the club".
He still wants to remain on good terms with his boyhood club and the supporters who cheered him on since his breakthrough in 2015.
Sancho may have left the players' WhatsApp group but he is still technically a United player and the club are paying £50,000 of his reported £250,000-a-week wage at Chelsea, where he has scored twice and laid on two assists.
Rashford and Sancho are represented by the same PR agency, which also looks after Cristiano Ronaldo, Raphael Varane and Mason Mount.
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Rashford could make his full Villa debut on Saturday when they host Ipswich Town at Villa Park.
Topics: Marcus Rashford, Manchester United, Aston Villa, Champions League, Premier League, Jadon Sancho, Chelsea
Josh Lawless