Former Manchester United star Paul Parker has slammed Rasmus Hojlund and accused the misfiring striker of being scared to touch the ball as his wretched form continues
19:32, 12 Feb 2025
Rasmus Hojlund
Rasmus Hojlund has failed to live up to his hefty £72million price tag(Image: Offside via Getty Images)
Former Manchester United star Paul Parker has slammed misfiring striker Rasmus Hojlund and accused him of being scared to touch the ball.
Hojlund is enduring a miserable season as he continues to fail to make a significant impact at United. The Danish flop arrived at Old Trafford in a £72million deal and has scored just seven goals all season - not finding the back of the net in his last 14 outings.
And former United favourite Parker reckons Hojlund's form is the worst it has ever been since arriving at Old Trafford, the former defender told Instant Casino: "Rasmus Hojlund's contribution to the team recently hasn't been very good.
"I think it's the worst it's ever been. He just looks afraid to make mistakes, and isn't playing with any belief in his own ability. He looks scared to touch the ball now, because he's worried about which way it's going to go, and he's not thinking about which way his passes are going before he gets it.
"He's clearly not in a very good place at this moment in time, and I'm not sure how Ruben Amorim best works with it between now and the end of the season.
Ruben Amorim
Ruben Amorim has demanded more of Hojlund(Image: Getty Images)
"The striker position at the club has been an issue for a while now, and I don't see it getting better anytime soon."
Amorim has previously spoken about wanting more from his striker, insisting Hojlund has to be more involved in matches when he does not have the ball after the two were seen in a tense exchange during United's narrow FA Cup win against Leicester City.
“I think it’s a good thing. I will not say one word bad about this type of behaviour,” Amorim said of the incident with Hojlund. “He needs to understand that sometimes he has to do a job without touching the ball.
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“He cannot get so frustrated because in the next play, maybe he will have a situation near the goal. So he has to be calm. But this is a character, and if you know so many players from that kind of character that he has from that country, they always want more. They want to score, they feel the critics.
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“So, it’s a good thing, but he will improve. And a striker needs a very good team to deliver very good balls for him, and we are not helping our strikers at moment.”