Manchester United U18 v Sunderland U18: FA Youth Cup
Manchester United are expected to sell Rasmus Hojlund to Napoli in the summer (Picture: Getty)
Napoli star Kevin De Bruyne says Rasmus Hojlund has the potential to go on and become a ‘top player’ despite his ‘difficult’ start at Manchester United.
Hojlund arrived in Manchester with weighty expectations on his shoulders after United struck a £72million deal with Atalanta for the striker back in 2023.
But the young centre-forward struggled to live to up his hefty price tag across his first two years at Old Trafford, despite the occasional flash of promise.
Hojlund’s disappointing return of just four goals in 26 Premier League appearances last season convinced United turn to the transfer market for attacking reinforcements, with the club splashing out around £200million on Matheus Cunha, Bryan Mbeumo and Benjamin Sesko.
With Hojlund deemed surplus to requirements, the attacker’s camp were given permission to talk to other clubs. Napoli were quick to make their interest known, going on to sign the Denmark international on a season-long loan.
Following in the footsteps of Scott McTominay, Hojlund has enjoyed an eye-catching season in Naples and appears a player reborn.
The 23-year-old has scored 14 goals in 37 appearances for Napoli, finding the target in big moments, both in Serie A and in the Champions League, while building a promising on-field partnership with De Bruyne.
Rasmus Hojlund of SSC Napoli gestures during the Serie A
Hojlund has scored 14 goals in all competitions for Napoli (Picture: Getty)
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Rasmus Hojlund and Kevin De Bruyne of SSC Napoli celebrate
The Dane is enjoying playing with De Bruyne in Italy (Picture: Getty)
‘With Kevin you have to think about running, you already know that the right ball will come,’ Hojlund recently said of De Bruyne, who brought his illustrious decade-long spell with Manchester City to an end last summer.
When asked about Hojlund’s kind comments, De Bruyne told La Gazzetta dello Sport: ‘I try, but I don’t know… every time someone makes a move, I try to serve them. I have to try to serve them.
‘If you don’t give them the ball, they’ll stop making a move, and it would be worse for me too.
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester United - UEFA Europa League Final 2025
Napoli are ready to make Hojlund’s deal permanent (Picture: Getty)
‘He [Hojlund] can become a top player, he has great qualities.
‘He had a difficult time in Manchester, but now he’s doing very well here.
‘He’s still young, he has a lot of time ahead of him.’
SSC Napoli v Sporting Clube de Portugal - UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Phase MD2
It’s likely Hojlund has played his final match for United (Picture: Getty)
The agreement that saw Hojlund move to Italy included an obligation to buy should Napoli qualify for year’s season’s Champions League. The club are currently well positioned to achieve that, sitting third in the Serie A table.
But even if Napoli miss out on qualifying for Europe’s premier competition, their sporting director Giovanni Manna has suggested the club are very likely to make Hojlund’s deal permanent.
The permanent fee agreed between United and Napoli is believed to be in the region of £38m.
‘Hojlund has been instrumental,’ Napoli chief Manna told the Italian media last month.
‘Even when he hasn’t scored, he’s always worked hard for the team.
‘We have an obligation to buy him outright if we qualify for the Champions League, but I don’t think his future lies far from Napoli even if that doesn’t happen.’
Hojlund still has three years remaining on his current contract with United.
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