Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Says Marcus Rashford Can Improve Like Cristiano Ronaldo

Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is hoping Marcus Rashford can improve his game like former Red Devils forward Cristiano Ronaldo to become more of a goal threat.

The England international converted a late penalty in United's 3-1 win over Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday to send United into the quarter-finals, but Solskjaer feels there's still room for him to improve.

Per Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News, the Norwegian thinks Rashford evolving game like former United star Cristiano Ronaldo will help him add more goals to his game:

"I keep battering him with it that he should also score as many goals as [Romelu Lukaku] after training sessions have finished, you should always get them simple tap-ins, like Rom scored in last few games.

"Rashy's goals are sometimes worldies and he does have a sensational strike of the ball, but you see the improvement and maturity in Cristiano's goals from when he was young to now, he scores more from inside the box and that's what Rashy has to improve as well.

"His tap-ins, his movement, stay in the box, maybe not get away from centre-backs a few more times. That'll just have to get those five or 10 extra goals just from staying in the box. And he's been told that!"

Ronaldo began his career as a winger, and much of what he contributed at United came from combining a consistent end product with his searing pace and exceptional skill.

Following his move to Real Madrid and as he got older, however, the Portuguese became more of a poacher and developed into a relentless goal machine, one who averaged 50 per season during his nine years in the Spanish capital.

Rashford, 21, has split his time at United between playing as a centre-forward and on the flanks, and he's contributed 43 goals in 159 appearances, with 11 goals this season in 36 outings.

He has often been let down by his finishing, but Solskjaer has quickly worked to improve it, as football commentator Adam Summerton and writer Liam Canning have observed:

Along with Jesse Lingard, Rashford is one of relatively few players to come through United's academy and establish himself as a first-team regular in recent years. Paul Pogba is also an academy graduate but left the club in 2012 to spend his formative years at Juventus before returning.

On whether Rashford could spend his entire career at United, Solskjaer said:

"That'd be fantastic. The legends we've had at this club that have stayed so long and been one-club players, and we hope Rashy's gonna be one of them.

"It's both up to him and us, if he keeps producing he'll stay in the team and that's up to him, to stay in the team. You don't see too much of change in a player in three months but he's 21 and you're excused if sometimes you really hit the highs and are a little bit off the pace.

"And, to be fair to Rashy, you don't expect consistency yet in all of the play. But he's always got quality, his finishing, his striking of the ball, his attitude, that's always gonna be with him."

Solskjaer is only contracted at Old Trafford until the end of the season, but the improvement players such as Rashford have shown under his guidance significantly bolsters his case for becoming the club's next permanent manager.

The youngster has a bright future ahead of him, particularly if he can continue to refine his game and become an even more effective player in the final third.

If he's going to emulate other players to do so, he could do far worse than model his playing style on Ronaldo's.