90min
·7 September 2023
90min
·7 September 2023
Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund is in "good shape" as he prepares to represent Denmark during the international break, which is a welcome message to fans after the £72m summer signing initially saw his debut for the club delayed by injury.
Having been unveiled on the Old Trafford pitch ahead of United's pre-season game against Lens in early August, Hojlund had to wait until last weekend for his first appearance.
The 20-year-old Dane, who carries the weight of expectation on his shoulders given the enormous price paid for him, had just over half an hour on the pitch in the 3-1 defeat to Arsenal – he arrived in the 67th minute but then the match had more than 10 minutes of stoppage time.
Hojlund showed plenty of promise during his cameo and United supporters can be buoyed by the fact that Denmark national team coach Kasper Hjulmand was impressed by the performance.
"I was over there a week ago, where I saw two training sessions, and I saw the Rasmus I know," Hjulmand said, via Bold.dk, adding that there have been no injury concerns since.
"He has never felt anything. So [United] have been very conservative and cautious with him. But he looks like himself, and I think his jump-in was convincing. He started by smashing into a centre-back and he made his mark on the game in the minutes he played."
Denmark are facing San Marino and then Finland in a pair of Euro 2024 qualifiers, although Hojlund isn’t likely to play 90 minutes in either game.
"There was 15 minutes of overtime [in Arsenal vs Man Utd], so he got a little more than they had expected," Hjulmand explained. "It looked fine and he is in good shape. There isn't twice 90 minutes for him, but we have a plan for how we can get the most out of him."