Manchester United’s pursuit of a striker has been well-documented and will only intensify as the summer transfer window approaches.
Erik Ten Hag has made it a point to bolster his front line after losing patience with Anthony Martial and becoming excessively dependent on the goalscoring of Marcus Rashford.
There seem to be two main prospects for the position in the form of top choices Harry Kane and Victor Osimhen, but a player of their caliber commands a club-record fee.
United have never spent more than £89m on a player, and will almost certainly need to spend more this summer if they want to recruit a world-class striker capable of competing with Erling Haaland in the years to come.
In a perfect world, United would not only buy a top striker after the season but also one capable of maturing into an exceptional striker over the decade.
That is, however, easier said than done. With the enormous expectations and pressures at a club of their stature, United cannot constantly take the chance on untested acquisitions and must often adopt a reactive rather than proactive transfer strategy.
Then there’s a player’s overall growth to consider, given that getting thrown into the deep end at United may not be the best option for their career trajectory, with their emphasis on finding a club where they can take the next step before transferring to a genuinely great club.
Both Haaland and Bellingham are excellent instances of this. They are both extremely talented players who are arguably the best young players in their respective positions, but they owe that in part to a gradual career progression aided by time at Borussia Dortmund, and they may not have developed as quickly if they had both moved to the Premier League instead.
For these reasons, United will still need to acquire an elite option this summer, but if at all feasible, it would be prudent to take a g/a/m/b/l/e on a lesser-known player who can help them in the long run without the urgent necessity to succeed.
Rasmus Hojlund may be the ideal option for them.
After his €17m transfer from Sturm Graz a year ago, the 20-year-old has had a good first season at Atalanta, collecting 14 goals and five assists in 33 games.
Hojlund made further headlines last week when he scored a hat-тгᎥc𝗸 in his maiden start for Denmark against Finland in a European Championship qualification, and another two in the upset loss to Kazakhstan on Sunday.
The obvious problem is that he is still extremely raw and would be a significant г𝔦ᵴ𝗸 for any club to accept if they could persuade Atalanta to trade him this summer.
They would like to recoup the reasonable cost they paid for him last summer and may hope to almost treble it with a deal for €30m.
That might imply that United would find it difficult to approve such a deal for a player with just seven league goals this season, yet the concern is that if he improves on his recent performances, the asking price and interest in him would only climb more.
There are also suggestions that Napoli may want to sign Hojlund this summer if they trade Osimhen, which would be the most logical next step in his blossoming career.
But, there is one tiny benefit. He declares himself a Manchester United supporter.
“Now that you ask,” he stated earlier this year, “I will not disguise the fаcт that I am a passionate Manchester United supporter.”
“So, personally, that would be one of the most important things for me, but it doesn’t меа𝚗 I wouldn’t turn down offers from other great teams at some time.”
For his size and pure speed, he has already been compared to the ‘new’ Haaland, but he lacks the City marksman’s constant precision finishing and scoring sense at the moment.
Hojlund has shocked many with his recent progress, despite never receiving much attention in his birthplace, as seen by his absence from the World Cup last year.
“It’s amazing to be able to demonstrate that in eight months, I’ve gone from being a player no one trusted to being surrounded by some of the finest Danish players in history and being part of the group,” he said in September when he made his international debut.
His hat тгᎥc𝗸 against Finland was the clearest indication yet that Denmark made a mistake in not picking him, and the teenager will be even more determined to prove his naysayers wrong.
Hojlund distinguished well during his initial years at the Copenhagen school, but his senior debut was confined to a rotating position.
He failed to make an impression even when given the opportunity, and despite scoring five goals in the European Conference League, he would never score a league goal for Copenhagen.
He departed for Austrian side Sturm Graz in January 2022 after being dissatisfied with his lack of playing time.
That was a decision that altered everything. Hojlund scored four goals in his first three league appearances for his new club and would net 12 goals in his half-season there before being picked up by Atalanta.
All eyes are on the kid as the summer transfer window approaches, with his recent heroics boosting the potential of his third move in a year and a half.
His path may not intersect with the club he supported as a youngster at this time, but if he maintains his current climb, it may not be completely out of the question.
United will want a striker to compete with Haaland, and they could be better off buying the ‘new’ one.
