When Ruben Amorim took over at Manchester United last year, there were high hopes, for one player in particular.
Ruben Amorim’s stunning record with Sporting gave optimism to Manchester United fans that the Portuguese boss could wave a magic wand and do the same at Old Trafford.
One of the players with high hopes was Rasmus Hojlund. Former Benfica coach Quique Flores told Record that Amorim would be able to help the Dane, based on his record of working with strikers in Portugal.
“Ruben now has the opportunity to train very good players in Manchester. Yes, he can do with Hojlund what he did with Gyokeres.”
Hojlund had a positive start under Amorim but got worse as the season progressed. He ended the campaign with only 10 goals in all competitions.
Manchester United sent Hojlund on loan to Napoli, after signing Benjamin Sesko as his replacement in the summer.
Hojlund backed for success at Napoli
Rasmus Hojlund wanted to stay at Manchester United and compete with Benjamin Sesko. But the Red Devils saw an opportunity to move him on, with Napoli committing to paying a future fee for the Dane.
Over in Napoli, Hojlund has got off to a good start. While he waited five months to score his first league goal at Manchester United, it took him only 14 minutes on his Serie A debut.
Former Napoli player Floro Flores likes what he has seen from Hojlund, and has compared him to former Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain.
He told Radio Marte: “Hojlund made a great impression on me with the way he defends the ball and the way he attacks space, and I also think he’s not yet at his peak condition.
“I haven’t seen a player like him in Naples since Higuain, even though the Argentine is even stronger.
“He’s 10 years younger than Lukaku and resembles Romelu in terms of his build and the way he runs deep. The Belgian hasn’t been as fast lately, but that also depends on his age. The Dane seems like a striker made for this team, one of those Neapolitans love so much because they wage war against everyone.
He also predicts Lukaku will face a ‘tough fight’ when he returns from injury later this year, to regain his starting spot in the Napoli team.
It is not the only high-profile comparison regarding Hojlund this week. A Sky Italia journalist labelled Hojlund a mixture of Lukaku and Victor Osimhen, but warns he is not at the level of either just yet.
Hojlund was frustrated in Napoli defeat
Rasmus Hojlund and Napoli took on Manchester City in the Champions League this week, where he was desperate to get on the scoresheet.
Opportunities were limited after Napoli had a player sent off early in the game, and they fell to a 2-0 loss at The Etihad.
Hojlund managed only 12 touches and did not attempt a single shot, before being substituted in the 71st minute.
He was quoted via TMW post-game: “Playing against City in this stadium is already difficult, playing 11 against 10 is even more so. It’s a very difficult match.”
Napoli are back in action on Monday night against Pisa.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
