Rio Ferdinand responds to Jadon Sancho’s controversial one-word Man Utd message

Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho delivered a brief response to Marcus Rashford’s winning debut after the forward completed a mid-season move to Aston Villa

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has suggested players have begun to perform better away from Old Trafford because the shackles are lifted when they leave.

Marcus Rashford became the latest to depart, albeit on loan, when he completed a February move to Aston Villa. He thanked fans for their “warm welcome” in an Instagram post after his debut, a 2-1 FA Cup fourth round victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

Jadon Sancho is also spending time away on loan, and he simply wrote “Freedom” in the comments section under Rashford’s post. The former Borussia Dortmund star is spending the season with Chelsea, who are almost certain to trigger an automatic buy option.

Plenty of other ex-United stars have thrived after permanent moves away, not least Anthony Elanga, Scott McTominay and even big-money flop Antony. Ferdinand has noticed a pattern starting to emerge, and has been thinking out loud about what has allowed these players to find the kind of form that deserted them at Old Trafford.

“You look at Antony, he’s got a man-of-the-match performance and a goal and assist in two games,” Ferdinand began on his Rio Presents podcast, referring to the Brazilian winger’s form on loan at Real Betis. “McTominay is playing like primetime Jude Bellingham at the moment. You’ve got Elanga, who’s a flying winger.

“You’ve got all these players that are leaving the club that are looking like new, dynamic footballers because the shackles are off, and the cloud and the pressure of Old Trafford, the badge, all that that brings, is allowing them to go ‘You know what, wow, what a difference that is’.

“You’re probably going to see the same from Rashford. It’s about unlocking what has unlocked Old Trafford for these players to perform.”

Will Marcus Rashford rediscover his form at Aston Villa? Have your say in the comments section

Rashford’s Villa debut came from the bench, with the England international joining fellow new signing Marco Asensio on the pitch. January arrivals Andres Garcia and Donyell Malen both started, with goals from Jacob Ramsey and Morgan Rogers helping Villa seal a 2-1 win.

“Every player and the supporters here really created a great atmosphere today,” manager Unai Emery said after the victory. “We started very good, scoring one goal in the first minute and then we were creating chances. We didn’t concede a lot to them.

“We were playing with some players like Andrés García, like Lamare Bogarde after Ezri Konsa got injured. He played very well. Donyell Malen played very well.

“How we were playing the last 30 minutes with Marco Asensio and Marcus Rashford was really good because we have to create again and build our team, progressing our structure as soon as possible, getting the performances like we did today.”

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