Hojlund's long-awaited goal shows his enduring promise

For a striker to go 21 games without a goal is quite something. When that forward is a Manchester United No 9, the pressure cooker is turned up to its maximum setting.

- PETE HALL

But while some criticism has been warranted, especially when it appeared Rasmus Hojlund was not putting in the hard yards to cure his most severe bout of profligacy in front of goal yet, there is something the doubters have to bear in mind before venting their fury – the embryonic Dane did not sign up for this.

When Hojlund was shown the United brochures, like many before him, he could not help but be wowed by the glory, the grandeur and, more pertinently, the faith this global footballing behemoth were putting in him by shelling out £72m.

The promise, however, was that an inexperienced striker would only be part of a multi-faceted United attacking unit and he would not be relied upon as the focal point of the forward line. Not yet, anyway.

It is not Hojlund’s fault that United have made such a mess of the recruitment process that Ruben Amorim has no other option than to keep putting the struggling Dane out there, week in, week out, in the hope he finds his goalscoring form sooner rather than later.