Had Manchester United made one of their many chances count against Crystal Palace before Andre Onana’s heroics salvaged a point, that would have rounded off a pretty perfect week for Erik ten Hag.
A seven-day spell which began with that 3-0 win at Southampton, followed by a seven-goal trouncing of Barnsley, with the good vibes continuing thanks to the welcome returns of two injury-enforced absentees.
A relieved Erik ten Hag welcomed back Mason Mount and Rasmus Hojlund ahead of Saturday’s trip to Crystal Palace. The former has been unavailable since that 2-1 defeat at Brighton and Hove Albion a month ago.
Hojlund, meanwhile, had not been seen since scoring against Arsenal during the pre-season tour of the USA. A game in which Manchester United’s marquee summer signing – Leny Yoro is stepping up his own recovery these days – fractured his foot.
The Red Devils are understandably wary of rushing Yoro back to competitive action. And, in an ideal world, Ten Hag would not have had to bring on Hojlund in such high-pressure circumstances away to Palace.
But as Man United created and squandered numerous chances – Alejandro Garnacho, Bruno Fernandes and Matthijs de Ligt all should have scored before Andre Onana pulled off a double save to leave Oliver Glasner awe-struck to bail them out at the other end – United’s new number nine found himself entering the fray with 76 minutes on the clock.
Andre Onana delighted as Rasmus Hojlund makes Manchester United return
Onana, meanwhile, is delighted to see United’s treatment room become that little bit quieter.
The return of Hojlund, Onana says, is a massive boost for a side who, despite putting ten past Barnsley and Southampton, still possess a maddening wasteful streak in front of goal.
“He’s a key player for us and we are all happy because he’s coming back,” Onana during his post-match press conference, Hojlund and Mount back but Luke Shaw and the forgotten man Tyrell Malacia set for more time away from the first-team roster.
“Malacia also came back [to training] yesterday, so it’s important to have everyone back. And then the manager will make the choice, and we’ll be happy with that.
“We’ll have to see [Hojlund] on the pitch, but I know he will score important goals for us. I’m happy to see him on the pitch.”
“We need our guys back.”
With 16 in his debut season, only captain Fernandes scored more than Hojlund during 2023/24.
And while the Denmark international faces a battle re-claiming his starting spot – Joshua Zirkzee was again the conduit for so many United attacks against Crystal Palace – a more traditional number nine gives Ten Hag a completely different dimension in the final third and a veritable Plan B.
Erik ten Hag hints at Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee partnership
“It’s always very pleasing for a manager when players are available,” Ten Hag said of Hojlund before kick-off in South London.
“Rasmus, as we all know, pre-season was a disaster for him. He’s been working so hard and he’s on the point to return.”
“Internal competition is good.
“But also, we have a squad with more than 11 for the line-up. We have to pick the team from game to game – sometimes from a tactical approach but also load management because we have to cover so many games.”
Ten Hag also believes Hojlund and Zirkzee can play together in the same frontline, possibly with the former moving into a wider role. The elegant performances of the £35 million signing is already demonstrating why Zirkzee has been labelled the best link man in the world.
Hojlund is another who should benefit from his clever movement and superb weight of pass.
We bought two young strikers who can play together but also rotate with each other,” adds Ten Hag. “It is good [that they are different types of striker].
“We can use them depending on the game.”
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