Rasmus Hojlund
Wayne Rooney has insisted he has "faith" in struggling Manchester United forward Rasmus Hojlund
Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney says he "has faith" in Rasmus Hojlund despite his difficult spell at Old Trafford, as he urged the Danish star to play things simple.
Hojlund was signed from Atalanta for around £72million in 2023 but is yet to justify that price tag after struggling to find his feet in Manchester and only has two Premier League goals this season.
The 22-year-old was benched for United's 1-1 draw against Arsenal after starting the last six games, with boss Ruben Amorim clearly losing patience with the player.
Hojlund's last goal for United came against Viktoria Plzen in a Europa League game on December 12, which means he has now gone 20 matches without a goal.
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But Rooney - United's iconic ex-centre forward who netted 253 times for the Red Devils - has backed Hojlund and said he took encouragement from a good moment after coming on against the Gunners.
"There was one chance where his shot was blocked after he had shown fantastic movement to get to the near post," Rooney said on Match of the Day 2. "To me that really showed how much he needs a goal right now, but all he can do is keep working.
"I've got faith in him. He's a good player who works hard, which is really important. He needs that bit of luck as well, but once he gets a break then more goals will follow."
Hojlund was much more effective in his first season under Erik ten Hag, which saw him net 10 goals in the Premier League and 16 in all competitions, but now he is struggling to get to grips with Amorim's new system. Rooney urged him to "simplify" his performances and make more runs into the box.
Wayne Rooney
Rooney urged Hojlund to "simplify" his performances and make more runs into the box
"As a striker for Manchester United, when you are not scoring goals there is a lot of pressure and a lot of people questioning if you can do it for United," he added.
"The best thing for Hojlund to do is simplify it. Making runs into the penalty box is as easy at it comes. When you are short of confidence you have got to make sure you make it into the penalty area and put yourself in a position where you can score, so that is something he can improve on.
"We are still waiting to see Hojlund find his feet for United, but it's important to point out that the whole team have not been at their best. I feel for him from that point of view because, nine times out of 10, forwards rely on their team-mates for service."
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