Atalanta striker Rasmus Hojlund insists he has not held talks with Erik ten Hag but says a move to Premier League giants Manchester United ‘would be huge’.
There will be plenty of eyes firmly fixed on the Denmark forward when Rasmus Hojlund’s side host the Northern Ireland in Friday’s European Championship qualifier in Copenhagen.
And not just because, the last time Hojlund took to the field in the capital, he marked his international bow with a hat-trick against Scandinavian neighbours Finland.
That was the performance which truly launched the 20-year-old as one of Europe’s best up-and-coming number nines. And, thus, laying the foundations for a potential £40 million move to Manchester United (The Times).
Will Rasmus Hojlund be Manchester United’s new striker?
The Athletic say that the Red Devils have held ‘detailed talks’ over a deal for both Hojlund and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Randal Kolo Muani.
And while the former Sturm Graz starlet did not deny those claims, he did insist that reports of a ‘video meeting’ with United boss Erik ten Hag were wide of the mark.
“There was no video meeting,” Hojlund tells MRE.
“It is a great club. I must have done something right if it is written that they would like me! My goal is to reach the highest level, and you could say that Manchester United is there (at the highest level).
“So it would be huge.”
Hojlund has never made any attempt to hide his adoration for the 13-time Premier League champions. He is, by his own admission, a ‘huge Manchester United fan’.
Whether he is ready to make his dream move a reality, however, is anyone’s guess. Hojlund, frequently likened to near-namesake Erling Haaland due to his Scandinavian roots, his rangy frame and his lethal finishing ability, scored 19 goals in 28 starts for club and country in 2022/23.
He remains largely unproven at an elite-level, however. What’s more, Hojlund is far less of a finished article than Haaland was when joining Borussia Dortmund – never mind Manchester City – back in 2020.
‘I am a little uncertain’
“Hojlund could be exciting. (But) whether it is the right thing… Hojlund gives me the impression that he’s a player who benefits from playing. If you can find the level in between…” the Denmark defender Jan Molby muses, via TipsBladet.
“Erling Haaland is the best example we have. From Salzburg to Dortmund, to the top. Playing for Atalanta is a good level, but it is also just below the top level in Italy. This means that there must be something in between that might be exciting.
“After all, these are the kinds of decisions you make. If he himself feels that there is an opportunity, and that he must go to the top now, then of course he must also go after that opportunity.
“But I’m still a little uncertain. There are many things I see in him that I really like. I just have a hard time assessing whether he can hold up at the very highest level.
“Therefore, I would like to see him somewhere between the level he is at now and the top.”
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