Rashford's camp 'upset' over Solskjaer telling him to 'prioritise his football'

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's comments urging Marcus Rashford to 'prioritise his football' over his stellar charity and campaigning work have left the Manchester United forward's camp 'upset', according to reports.

Rashford made his return for United in their defeat at Leicester at the weekend, and even netted to bring an end to his lengthy injury lay-off. Before the game, he was advised by his coach to put his football first.

The Athletic claim, though, that however positive Solskjaer may have been when discussing the situation, his comments have only irked figures close to Rashford.

The selfless footballer was widely praised for his work in attempting to end child food poverty in the UK, efforts which saw him awarded with an MBE last year. He was also able to force several U-turns from the government.

But Solskjaer now believes that Rashford must place all of his focus into his career on the field to make the most of his time with United and England.

Reacting to his quotes, Rashford's camp have been made to feel irritated. United, on their part, insist that Solskjaer's words were misinterpreted as he spoke glowingly after being questioned on the young footballer.

Those around Rashford believe that the 23-year-old is already working immensely hard to keep improving. Indeed, the versatile superstar is believed to be renowned at United for being dedicated to his profession.

His camp have pointed to several moments where Rashford has put his football on a pedestal, notably delaying an operation to help United at the back end of last season and then England, before then returning ahead of schedule.

In September, Rashford bit back against claims that he should 'stick' to football, and the same argument has resurfaced, even though it is understood that no malicious intent was meant by the under-fire Solskjaer.

Rashford missed the first two months of this campaign after undergoing surgery on a shoulder injury, and the lay-off also helped him to look after an ankle issue.

He made an immediate impact during his comeback against Leicester. Brought on in the second-half, Rashford quickly scored a late equaliser, before the hosts fought back yet again to win 4-2 and leave United stunned.

The result saw them fall to their fourth defeat in their last seven games in all competitions, a run which has firmly placed the spotlight on Solskjaer.

After the final whistle, Solskjaer reflected on the setback, admitting that United were 'below-par' and taking responsibility for a number of poor decisions.

'When you look at the game after and the four goals we conceded were all very poor,' the United manager said.

'When you concede four goals and play like we did, we don’t deserve to continue that run. Definitely, that performance was very below par and not good enough.

'We started with a very good goal from Mason and we were knocking on the door to get another one. But sloppy play saw us concede that first goal.

'That was disappointing. Second half was still ended to end but they created the better chances.

'Two goals from set pieces is disappointing and of course, 10 seconds after you equalise… that shouldn’t happen.'