FOCUS ON FOOTBALL
Solskjaer tells social justice campaigner Rashford to concentrate on his day job
OLE GuNNAR Solskjaer has urged Marcus Rashford to prioritise football to make the most of his career with Manchester united and England.
Rashford has been widely acclaimed for helping to tackle child food poverty, and famously forced the Government into a u-turn over school meal vouchers last year.
Solskjaer praised the 23-year-old striker for his charity work yesterday, but reminded him to keep a focus on football as he comes into his prime.
Rashford will be in the united squad for the first time this season at Leicester City today after recovering from shoulder surgery in August.
‘I know that we will see the best of Marcus in the years to come,’ said Solskjaer. ‘He has done remarkable things at a young age, but he is now coming into the best age for a footballer.
‘You know what he has done off the pitch as well because he has done some fantastic things, and now it is time to maybe prioritise his football and focus on football.
‘He’s got a challenge on his hands here at Manchester united, he has a challenge on his hands to play for England and I think Marcus is one of those who takes up those challenges.
‘He knows that we want a lot from him, but we are going to give him the time to get back to what he was and what he can be.’
Two weeks after coming under fire for starting Cristiano Ronaldo on the bench in a draw at home to Everton, Solskjaer was again forced to defend his actions yesterday.
Responding to a video clip on social media in which former united boss Sir Alex Ferguson was heard saying that teams should always start with their best players, Solskjaer said: ‘I’m sure Sir Alex knows that it doesn’t bother me.
‘He took some risks at times to rest Ryan Giggs, Wayne Rooney or David Beckham, the best players we had. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn’t.
‘It’s not really fair on the gaffer that something like this gets broadcast. You always have opinions and you speak to people in confidence.
‘I disagreed with the gaffer quite a few times and I told my wife, but that never made headlines as a player.
‘I’m the manager. I manage the players for the club. We all want to see Cristiano because he’s unique, but the plain fact is that he cannot play every single game.’
An angry Ronaldo made his feelings known by storming down the tunnel, but Solskjaer hasn’t needed to speak to the forward.
‘No, I want my players to not be happy with a situation,’ he added. ‘If you lose two points, how Cristiano felt then is natural.’
Meanwhile, Aaron Wan-Bissaka will be available to face Atalanta in the Champions League on Wednesday after united won their appeal to have the defender’s two-match ban reduced to one game following his sending-off against Young Boys last month.