Manchester United are still reeling after a shaky start to their 2023/24 season and have now won (8) as many games as they’ve lost in the first 16 matches across all competitions. Their summer signings are yet to play to their utmost potential and new forward Rasmus Hojlund is especially struggling.
Manchester United Told How To Get Best Out Of Rasmus Hojlund
Watch: Are Manchester United on life support?
Rio Ferdinand Sends Message To United On Hojlund
The Danish forward has not been able to score a single goal in the Premier League in eight appearances and is yet to get an assist either. He has scored three goals in as many UEFA Champions League matches but has been left frustrated for the majority of his stint.
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After the Red Devils’ 2-1 win over Fulham, Rio Ferdinand spoke on Hojlund’s situation and told TNT Sports: “I would have liked to have a little more time with Erik ten Hag [to discuss Hojlund] because he invested in a player whose best we don’t see. We don’t see his best qualities because the team doesn’t play to his strengths. He [Ten Hag] said in his press conferences that we wanted to play more directly with players like Hojlund and Rashford who can play on the counterattack. Too often they play on the sidelines and the quality is far from good enough.
“Antony doesn’t want to center, his first instinct is to see what he can do for himself. Marcus is more of a striker who wants to go to the end and see if he can finish. When he [Hojlund] makes his runs, the ball doesn’t get into the areas. He made a fantastic run in the first half and claimed the ball, which ended up being mis-centered by Garnacho. He runs good races. You have to play to your strengths. He’s not old enough to go after someone and say ‘give me the ball.’ He’s not there yet. Ruud van Nistelrooy, I saw players cry because of his demands when the ball was not given to him.”
How can United help Hojlund?
The young striker has not gotten the necessary service to get a chance to open his Premier League account this season, hardly getting the passes in the dangerous areas in the box. Erik ten Hag has to get his midfielders and wingers to put in better passes into the box for Hojlund to pounce on them and start scoring in the league.
It has been reported that the Red Devils are planning to ‘ease the pressure’ of the Danish forward by signing a new forward in the January transfer window. That is unlikely to really help Hojlund, who was hailed as “extraordinary” last season, and might further impact his morale and confidence of being the club’s long-term no.9.
