Game over for ‘lost’ Man Utd star as stunning transfer to 36-time league champions opens up

Manchester United star Rasmus Hojlund has been told only one thing can save his Red Devils career amid growing claims that Ruben Amorim will look to move him on this summer and with one of European football’s most successful clubs now plotting an Old Trafford rescue mission for the Dane.

Hojlund joined Manchester United in the summer of 2023 for a fee that would eventually top £72m after with Atalanta effectively netting a 500% profit on their initial €17m investment from Sturm Graz some 18 months earlier. Signing a five-year deal at Old Trafford, Hojlund’s scored 16 times in 43 appearances during a debut season of some promise under Erik ten Hag.

However, little has gone right for the 22-year-old this season, with the striker only notching eight times so far and with the player only scoring once in his last 26 appearances.

For a Premier League striker, that tally is clearly not good enough, let alone one at a club as prestigious as Manchester United, and his poor return in front of goal is evidently a factor in Ruben Amorim’s side being the 15th lowest scoring side from 20 Premier League teams this season.

Now Troy Deeney has explained why he thinks Hojlund is destined to leave Old Trafford this summer, fearing the player’s lack of confidence has ultimately done him in and with only one thing potentially now saving him from being mercilessly shown the door.

“Based on what I saw from Hojlund against Lyon, I may as well get fit,” Deeney told talkSPORT. “No joke, he was awful.

“He looked confused, he looked lost. His skill set is running behind and getting pot-shots off as quickly as he can.

“He ran to players, he was marking himself as opposed to a defender marking him.

“As a striker, we’re always told if a defender can touch you and feel you, then you’re in the wrong position. He was running to the defender. ”

With Hojlund struggling to make his mark, the Daily Express has revealed that 36-time Italian champions Juventus are weighing up a move to prise the player away from Old Trafford amid a belief that the Red Devils could be open to his exit for either a cut-price fee or on a season’s loan with an obligation to buy.

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Deeney destroys Hojlund with Man Utd career almost over

Deeney accepts that all strikers have off days, though with Hojlund he’s looked off-colour for the best part of a year now.

And Deeney thinks the pressure has got to the 22-year-old, who can only spare himself from being put up for sale by having an amazing pre-season and a clean slate.

“I just think based on that, he was awful. The thing is, you can have off days in terms of scoring and have a low year.

“But he was getting bullied. It looks like the pressure is getting to him. So he will have to have an unbelievable pre-season to stay there.”

With United desperate to land a new striker this summer – Liam Delap has been made their top target owing to his bargain £30m exit clause in the event of Ipswich’s relegation – Hojlund could find himself the fall-guy and with Joshua Zirkzee starting to show his fighting spirit after a difficult start at Old Trafford.

“Obviously he had that tough time earlier in the season when he got dragged (against Newcastle) and laughed at,” Deeney said.

“Since then, he’s just shown a resilience of, ‘No, I’ll show you’. I’m disappointed for him because if [Andre] Onana hadn’t made those mistakes [against Lyon], we’d be talking about how great of a performance it was from Zirkzee.

“The conversation will now be is Zirkzee about go on this run and are we going to see his full potential?”

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Meanwhile, United have swiftly rebuffed an approach from Real Betis to extend Antony’s loan into a second season, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s stance on the Brazilian’s next move crystal clear and with a former star passing on transfer advice over the winger.

Elsewhere, United are reportedly ‘leading the race’ for a talismanic Ligue 1 star, who has been compared to Lionel Messi, and who could be available for £20-25m (up to €29m / $33m) this summer with his contract due to expire in June 2026.

On the incoming front, United have also been described as ‘favourites’ in the chase for a 15-goal Premier League forward.

Meanwhile, Roy Keane has been left stunned by one United star in particular after he aided a Newcastle United goal on Sunday afternoon and in a crushing 4-1 defeat at St James’ Park.

The decline of Rasmus Hojlund at Man Utd by numbers