Rasmus Hojlund reveals what Ruben Amorim told him before first-minute Man Utd goal
Rasmus Hojlund scored twice in Manchester United's 3-2 victory over Bodo/Glimt in the Europa League but the Danish striker also had a big hand in the opening goal
by Tom Victor · The MirrorManchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund has shared the advice Ruben Amorim gave him about playing forward-facing football after the approach paid off against Bodo/Glimt.
Hojlund scored twice for United as they survived a scare against the Norwegian side to win 3-2 at Old Trafford. It was a first home game under new head coach Amorim, and a first win under the Portuguese.
While his goals were important, Hojlund's part in Alejandro Garnacho's opener was just as significant. He closed down visiting goalkeeper Nikita Haikin at pace, forcing the Russian to panic, and Garnacho was left with a tap-in.
Speakng to TNT Sports after the game, Hojlund opened up on Amorim's message. And he also pointed to the help his new boss gave him in relation to what proved to be the winner.
"He told me today not to think too much about the guys behind me and try to work a little bit more with just what I can see in front, to be very aggressive towards the goal," Hojlund said. "And obviously we saw that with the first goal and I was happy with that."
The winner, just five minutes into the second half, came as Hojlund got in front of his man to turn a low Manuel Ugarte cross beyond Haikin. "The manager told me at half time to stick to running [to] the first post and we saw how it worked out," he added.
The Danish international has already begun to see parallels with the system he played in for previous club Atalanta, suggesting Amorim's set-up suits him well. It wasn't all plain sailing, though, with Hakon Evjen and Philip Zinckernagel on target as Bodo/Glimt led during the first half and United keeper Andre Onana producing a smart stop to prevent Patrick Berg scoring a late leveller.
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"Obviously we came back and showed character but we want to make sure these games don't get too exciting," Hojlund said. "But obviously the game is about the three points and we did the job today."
Next up for United is anothe home game, this time against Everton in the Premier League. Hojlund missed both of last season's meetings with the Toffees through injury, but both went United's way, with Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford on target in a 2-0 home win.
Amorim was pleased with his team's performance, while recognising there is still some work to do in the long run. "Of course, I see what what everybody sees, good moments, difficult moments," he told TNT Sports.
"There was some confusion in the end trying to hold the result, but the lads did a great job. They ran, they pressed, they tried to do the things we have worked on in the last three days and we won!"
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