Danish international striker Rasmus Højlund has emerged as an essential cog in Manchester United’s attack.
Despite a challenging start following his arrival in the summer, especially in the Premier League, Højlund only managed to score his first goal in his 15th league game, contributing to United’s comeback against Aston Villa on 26 December.
Despite a brief break due to injury, he has now amassed seven league goals and was recognised as the player of the month in February, becoming the first Dane to receive such an honour.
The interactions between the attacking players and Benni McCarthy, former FC Porto player and current assistant to Erik ten Hag, were crucial to Højlund’s goalscoring performance, as he scored in six consecutive league games.
Højlund shared these experiences on Wednesday during the Danish national team’s training camp ahead of their friendly matches against Switzerland and the Faroe Islands.
“We had a couple of forward meetings with Benni McCarthy, where we talked about things. It wasn’t just me and a couple of others, it was all the front-line players who took part in the meeting. We talked about playing well together and helping each other, because that’s how we get the best results. We watched some videos and there were references to doing things better here and there. We could see that, and then we did it on the pitch in training and in matches”, says Rasmus Højlund.
In total, the Dane has scored 13 goals in 31 games for Manchester United in all competitions. That’s the most goals he’s ever scored in a season at senior level. The Nordic also recognises that he is slowly becoming a better footballer.
“I try to train well and prepare well every day. I train my strengths and weaknesses. I’m getting better and better. I’ve had a good month, but it’s the result of good work over a long time. I’m clicking a bit better than at the start of the Premier League season”, says Rasmus Højlund.
After the good period, he missed four games due to a muscle injury, which he has now overcome.
