Rasmus Hojlund is hitting his stride at Manchester United with one former Red Devil drawing comparisons between the Denmark international and Premier League icon Mark Hughes.
The very best centre-forwards, Paul Parker argues, are not only scorers of ‘great goals’ but also ‘great goalscorers. Take Mark Hughes for instance, a man renowned for his thumping acrobatic volleys but also a master of simpler things.
Rasmus Hojlund, taking his tally to ten in Manchester United colours, appears to share Hughes’ penchant for the spectacular and the straightforward. After bundling home the most classic centre-forward’s goal away to Wolves, darting to the near post and converting from point blank range, Hojlund lashed in a stunner from outside the box after bamboozloing a West Ham defender with a clever change of direction.
Rasmus Hojlund in form for Manchester United
“A good striker can score both ugly and beautiful goals. Rasmus Hojlund doesn’t care how the goals are scored. He just wants to score,” Parker, a two-time Premier League winner under Sir Alex Ferguson and a former team-mate of Hughes, tells Danish publication Tipsbladet.
“Yes, his goal against West Ham was excellent. But the goal against Wolverhampton was more important to me because it was an ugly goal, and it came after a beautiful run. There aren’t many forwards who would make that run, but Hojlund did.
“All he wants is to score goals. Manchester United haven’t had a striker like that since Mark Hughes (who left for Chelsea in 1995). And it’s very much needed at the club right now.”
After a sluggish start, at least in the Premier League, Hojlund has now found the net in four straight games and in five of his last six. There remains a feeling, however, that the £64 million signing from Atalanta still needs greater service from his United team-mates, that wonderfully constructed Wolves goal – Marcus Rashford and Luke Shaw combining – one of the few moves Hojlund did not have to start as well as finish.
The new Mark Hughes?
“They haven’t used him well enough at all,” Parker adds, Hojlund visibly frustrated with Alejandro Garnacho after another opportunity squandered during the FA Cup triumph over Newport County a fortnight ago.
“Like Mark Hughes, Hojlund always tries to get the best out of even a bad ball. However, he has not yet reached the point where he complains to his team-mates like Mark Hughes would when he receives a bad pass.
“When he did, it was just to pull himself together, otherwise he would point someone out in the locker room after the game.”
from United In Focus https://ift.tt/lZ4rdQ0