Rasmus Hojlund is transformed after leaving Man United, his remarkable stats speak volumes
In a story that is beginning to feel all too familiar for Manchester United fans, Rasmus Hojlund appears to have officially returned to form after leaving the club to join Napoli.
The Dane has scored seven goals in all competitions for club and country since leaving Man United, including a brace in his most recent outing for Denmark against Belarus on Thursday evening.
Hojlund joined Napoli on loan on September 1, but the two clubs agreed to a clause that states the Italian side must purchase the striker for £38million so long as they qualify for the UEFA Champions League this season.
Given Napoli are currently top of Serie A with five wins from six games this season under Antonio Conte, that appears likely.
It would be a significant deficit on the £72million that Man United splashed on the youngster when they signed him from Atalanta in 2023.
A familiar story for Man United
Man United were already left with egg on their face when Scott McTominay left the club to join Napoli in the summer of 2024, after the former academy star won the Italian top-flight in his first season while being named the league’s most valuable player.
The Scot finished 18th in the Ballon d’Or rankings, and Hojlund appears on to be on a similar trajectory after mimicking McTominay‘s career path.
Hojlund scored just minutes into his debut for Napoli, while he has scored five goals across his last three games for club and country.
After only managing to score three goals across his final 36 games for Man United, Hojlund has already scored four goals in his first six games for Napoli.
The 22-year-old is averaging 0.59 goals per 90 minutes in Serie A this season for Napoli, a remarkable improvement on his return of 0.18 goals per 90 minutes in league action last season for Man United.
His expected goals per shot has also nearly doubled from 0.16 to 0.30, which signifies his shot attempts have a much higher likelihood of resulting in a goal due to getting himself into stronger positions to score.
He is also performing better in the air, winning 57 per cent of his aerial duels this season, compared to just 25 per cent in the Premier League last season.
A sly dig from the Denmark manager
Man United manager Ruben Amorim may be interested to hear the thoughts of Denmark manager Brian Riemer following his team’s 6-0 demolition of Belarus.
“I think Rasmus has the quality for both leagues, without discussion,” Riemer told TipsBladet after the game.
“Does he fit in Italian football? Yes. There was no doubt about that, because he had already proven that. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t fit in English football. On the contrary, I would almost say.
“The fact that he is now on a well-functioning team and has players around him who take pride in doing good for others helps to make the outcome for a striker like Rasmus, who needs to be serviced.
“It is more important than which league you play in.”
As Hojlund continues to prove the doubters wrong, United are left wondering what he could have achieved in a system built for purpose.