I always find it funny when people act like they know what a player's potential is. You don't. You're a fan that sits in your couch and watches football, just like the rest of us. You have absolutely zero knowledge how good any player can be, just like myself and every other fan.
9
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 12
- Goals
- 2
- Assists
- 0
- Yellow cards
- 0
Ouch. So, now we are in that phase then? Throwing insults? Yeah, i will skip that.
I think you’re almost certainly right, but there is that small chance he really evolves into a genuinely good player capable of leading the line.
I do feel there is a lot made on this board of ‘potential’, and not just regarding Hojlund. I think for some posters there is almost an expectation of consistent linear upward movement in a players early
20’s, and it very rarely happens like that. He’s in his 4th season as a professional first-teamer and has over 160 games for club and country under his belt. Logically that implies that virtually all the significant improvements have already come, it seems naive to keep expecting more.
Your examples are 30 year old PL experienced strikers and a young lad that have scored fewer goals than Højlund? Not only that, you include "weaker" teams that are all above us on the table
Above us in the table because their strikers score goals.
I dont’t think he’s fast, unless its on a long distance. People will point to top measured speed, but he really doesn’t leave anyone for dead, his acceleration is average.
Strange how Arsenal and Liverpool are above us without their striker scoring much then. Maybe it doesn't come down to the striker all the time.
I agree. In his first few games with us, Hojlund looked very lively and he ran his socks off with glee. He's however looked a completely different player once the reality of the enormous challenge that comes with starting at United as a number 9 presents.
He moved to a bigger club too soon, and a huge club with our issues was the last place he needed to be for his development. It really was poor judgement on the part of the club to allow this to happen
I wouldn't be against loaning in a proven goal scorer in January if the option lies within the realms of possibility. Unless Amorim is a miracle worker I simply can't see it turning around for Hojlund this season. We can't waste the season without trying to fix this issue
My man, with all due respect, no one believes the part in bold haha. I jest.
Denmark where much better in attack when both Hojlund and Albert Grønbæk went off.
Hojlund couldn't get on the ball and only had 16 touches in 78 minutes, by far the least in the match among the starters.
Isaksen came on in the 60th and had 32 touches which was more than Grønbæk (the man he replaced) who only had 31 touches. 31 was the second least number of touches by a starter, but almost twice Hojlund's numbers.
Isaksen played through a few incisive balls when he came on and combined well with Eriksen who was also playing some good balls. Hojlund was nowhere near the end of any of them before his exit. In all fairness the same can be said about Dolberg who came on for Hojlund. However Dolberg has long settled into being a bang average forward after his early hype at Ajax which even eclipsed Hojland's hype before he signed for United.
Why would you not believe that when the post you quoted literally says I don't think he is good enough? I don't think he is good enough right now to lead the line for us. I have said this in many posts previously, so what exactly is there to not believe?
There is a difference between thinking he is good enough and defending a talented player of ours with potential. He is one of us, you know, you'd do well as a fan to not completely shit on him after every game because he doesn't score as many goals as you want from a striker.
Players looking good when they get to United and then struggling to recapture their form has been a regular thing for quite a while. Plus, taking young players and really improving them has also been an issue. So I'm not sure it's about that.
Nah personally I've rated him because his actual ball striking and finishing instinct is very promising at this stage, along with him being a physical beast. He's also excellent at carrying the ball at full pace, which is a rare trait that almost no one else in our squad (including Rashford) is good at doing.
He's not great technically but that can be worked around if he can improve the instinctual parts of the position, which is everyone's biggest question mark of course. If he can't fix those issues he'll never make it, but there's also the small chance he does and transforms into a monster
Geez can we chill a little?! Not just with Hojlund but with all our players. We've had a properly cr@p manager who'd make even Margot Robbie look like Susan Boyle ffs.
Let's see how they do under a proper coach who, we need to remind ourselves, will need time to embed his ideas.
Let's see how they do under a proper coach who, we need to remind ourselves, will need time to embed his ideas.
What i find the most confusing thing is that to many Hojlund isnt getting the service required for a striker.
However, does anyone else think that Zirkzee is getting in to these positions where the service is not so bad?
Zirkzee just seems to lack some pace & killer instinct to finish his chances almost like he is playing a second slower than everyone else in the front line.
However, Hojlund doesnt seem to be getting in to any of the positions Zirkzee is getting to even if the goalscoring ability does not matter.
Zirkzee seems to have the ability to pick up decent places as a striker whilst Hojlund is nowhere near these places.
However, does anyone else think that Zirkzee is getting in to these positions where the service is not so bad?
Zirkzee just seems to lack some pace & killer instinct to finish his chances almost like he is playing a second slower than everyone else in the front line.
However, Hojlund doesnt seem to be getting in to any of the positions Zirkzee is getting to even if the goalscoring ability does not matter.
Zirkzee seems to have the ability to pick up decent places as a striker whilst Hojlund is nowhere near these places.
Funny how you can watch the same games and have completely different views on it. My thoughts are Zirkzee lacks in every abilities, position, speed, ball control. Where Hojlund are a threat most of the times with his run, he doesn’t get the service, none of our wingers are good enough at passing/crossing and Bruno keep playing out wide to them. Of course Hojlund shouldn’t be the main striker at this point and this age, but are still miles better then Zirkzee in every aspect
Wow okay. Personally i dont see Hojlund make any runs because he is has his back on the CB's trying to almost grind with them like he is at a night club.
Zirkzee on the other hand is making runs, very slow runs but towards the right areas without grinding his back on the CB's.
Coming at this debate with a rhetoric of a loyal fan who just wants to get behind a player who is "one of us" is all well and good when you're defending your Scandinavian bretherin
where was this energy when you were giving your opinion on Bruno a few weeks ago?This is classic fans double standards. It is ok to criticize x and y player but don't criticize my favourite player. Then it is not ok.Coming at this debate with a rhetoric of a loyal fan who just wants to get behind a player who is "one of us" is all well and good when you're defending your Scandinavian bretherin
By one of us I mean that he is a United fan since youth, not simply being a United player. I tend to support younger players and new signings, especially when they really care about the club. Then again, you got players like Zirkzee and Rashford who just seem to not give a shit, and I will criticise them. I don't blindly back players because they play for us, but recently, fans online are quick to express complete loathe for a young, inconsistent player and it is just strange to me. As for the post on Bruno, it was posted in a moment where I was furious with him. I have backed him since he signed, and only in the last two seasons have I begun to criticise him occasionally. The reason for that is that he is our best player who should be relied on and be a consistent performer, not play awfully the first 9-10 games of the season. These games often lay the foundations for the rest of the season, so when a key player in his prime plays poor for that duration, then yes I will be upset. But I did not shit on him. If I did, you can quote me where I did.Coming at this debate with a rhetoric of a loyal fan who just wants to get behind a player who is "one of us" is all well and good when you're defending your Scandinavian bretherin
Hojlund has been in a poor form for a long time, since before the Euros. Eriksen looked good though.
Would honestly be interesting to see their minutes played and goalscoring opportunities/shots they’ve had. Then again, movement, being involved in play etc. all play a part in your attack, something Hojlund struggles with (though I think he was magnificent against Brentford in all those CF metrics - but those games seem to be the exception).
I’m hoping Amorim’s tactics and coaching can get the best out of him but yeah….we need a striker who can lead the line right now. Not 3-5 years from now.
Of course he can improve, but ffs he either do it now, or go somewhere else to improve his game. Out of all positions, n 9 is the only position that you buy someone who is proven to score goals. We brought him with only 7 goals in the Italy.
We don't play much better with Zirkzee, either.
Brother you are not making it better. Manchester united should not have a main striker classic number 9 with 10 goals.
Agreed. Its interesting to see his compatriots defend him to the hilt. There isn't a conspiracy against him, the boy is simply not fit to lead the forward line at the moment
And no one disagrees with that. But the comments aren't just "he isn't good enough right now". It is more the absolute nonsense that comes out from some posters that he is shit, or that he doesn't have any qualities that makes them (us) defend him. He showed clear potential last season, unfortunately, he has regressed this season under ten Hag like many others have done. We just have to hope Amorim can improve him, but regardless of that, we need a more experienced and better striker.
Agree with this, it's clear he has talent and a will to succeed but he's been thrust into one of hardest jobs in world football with hardly any support. It's already been discussed about how little service he gets which is true but also his hold up play at times is really poor. I went to OT for the game against PAOK and he had 1 good chance all game which he missed, after that he got his head down and didn't have a good game
It's clear to see his confidence is rock bottom right now and he needs a goal and some success desperately. I think we will see rashford thrown into the 9 when we play Ipswich with Hojlund becoming the backup which is exactly what he needs right now. Let the senior player take the heat and give Hojlund some space to grow.
For anyone that didn't catch the Spain game. A very typical Højlund performance in the end, I would say.
Watched it, and I honestly feel sorry for him. He seems bereft of confidence, poorly positioned, and appears to overthink everything. Although it was a very good side they played against, he was pretty much invisible throughout the game, just like he is for us. Hopefully, he bags a goal or two soon to regain some confidence. However, I feel he might need a loan to a lesser league where he could dominate, gain confidence and hopefully get his development going again, because I fear he has stagnated completely.
Spain is obviously among the very best national teams in the world, but they were also missing key players, and on the day they actually gave away the ball in the build-up phase quite a bit. This should have been good counter-attacking opportunities, but it just didn't happen - partly because Højlund makes the wrong runs, a bad touch, or whatever.
It's telling that he hasn't scored for Denmark in 2024 in 11 appearances, which is a stark contrast to the 7 goals from 8 appearances in 2023.
I am willing to wait to see what happens under Amorim but his inability to get into games is a huge concern.
He has not improved, instead really regressed since he came here. He cannot hold up the ball at all, his first touch is always chasing himself and his passing is quite poor.
The fundamentals to being a top striker are missing, his best attribute is shooting but he cannot get himself in a position to score.
He has not improved, instead really regressed since he came here. He cannot hold up the ball at all, his first touch is always chasing himself and his passing is quite poor.
The fundamentals to being a top striker are missing, his best attribute is shooting but he cannot get himself in a position to score.
Oh, so 10 goals isn’t better than 7? Btw, in what translates to 20 games.
Take some responsibility for your mistakes… brother.
Never said there was. But the reasonable criticism is very hard to separate from the idiotic nonsense in here. Let’s start with not lying, right?
As I see it he does at least as many good as bad things in this video. Unless you only want to see the bad things, of course.
The fact that he wrestles defenders isn’t the problem for me, it’s that he wrestles defenders so aimlessly. Many top players try and pin their markers to gain an advantage by turning them or pulling them out of position to play the ball in behind.
Hojlund does none of that he’s just there getting handsy with defenders for the fun of it. The extra 3 seconds spent sumo wrestling gets rid of any advantage he could have had and gives the advantage to the defender who has stopped a potential attack or can just foul him and bring that bit of play to a stop.
Nicolas Jackson and Watkins get their backs into defenders all the time to be able to quickly spin and exploit the space behind. Salah and Kane also consistently use back to play strength to create dangerous situations for them and their teammates.
The Brentford game is one of the only PL games I’ve seen Hojlund actually use all that grappling purposefully. Other than that it’s been terrible centre forward play.
Hojlund does none of that he’s just there getting handsy with defenders for the fun of it. The extra 3 seconds spent sumo wrestling gets rid of any advantage he could have had and gives the advantage to the defender who has stopped a potential attack or can just foul him and bring that bit of play to a stop.
Nicolas Jackson and Watkins get their backs into defenders all the time to be able to quickly spin and exploit the space behind. Salah and Kane also consistently use back to play strength to create dangerous situations for them and their teammates.
The Brentford game is one of the only PL games I’ve seen Hojlund actually use all that grappling purposefully. Other than that it’s been terrible centre forward play.
Curious as to what you regard as “good” in that video (judging against what we’d expect from one of the world’s most highly regarded 21 year old strikers)?
As I see it, the best two clips are in the second half where he manages to get the ball under control and pass it out to a winger, which are the type of standard hold up play I’d expect relatively consistently from any CF playing at championship level or above. There’s nothing that says “this is a special player who will be great in a couple of years” to me at least.
I mean, you're not wrong but putting the boot into a 21 year old striker who is clearly struggling to settle, yet has racked up the same number of goals/game as Marcus Rashford over the same period of time, rings a little hollow considering how often you've defended the latter player.
He's not getting the service? You can say that about any player. He's bang average at best, slow in acceleration, can't turn, can't hold up ball, takes an hour to shift the ball from his feet, poor awareness, not getting into the right posisitons. Amorim will be play Rashford up there 100%. Hopefully he'll come good but at the moment he is bang average at best.
I watched the game, as I imagine many others here did. He doesn’t make many mistakes, but he also doesn’t do anything extraordinary—he’s just there, invisible, not contributing much. He’s not creating chances for himself or others. I think his confidence is low, and he overthinks things because of it.
I still stand by my opinion that he’s not ready to lead the line for a club with our ambitions. He might be capable of doing so in the future, but right now, being our main striker is as much a disservice to him as it is to us. I think he needs to develop with less pressure, perhaps in an easier league, because it feels like he’s regressing with us, which is a shame if he has the potential to become something special.
Omg, my point is, of course, that I don’t see this video as particularly damning. He does some things ok and other things not so well. It doesn’t really show that he played badly as such like some claim he did.
But he’s clearly struggling atm, everyone can see that.
He has completely lost his way. I hope it's just a confidence thing.