Rasmus Hojlund turned to the outstanding Manchester United fans in the far corner of the King Power Stadium and raised his hands above his head to salute them. There was an embrace with Matthijs de Ligt as he left the pitch and then a hug from Ruben Amorim on the touchline.
The Danish striker took a seat next to Alejandro Garnacho, and the pair broke into a smile. They had sat next to each other on the advertising hoardings after Garnacho's goal 20 minutes or so earlier.
Now, they might have been comparing notes. So after all this time, how did it feel? The last time [Garnacho](https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/all-about/alejandro-garnacho) scored for [United](https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/all-about/manchester-united-fc) it was November. Hojlund's goal drought had reached 22 hours and 18 minutes when he finally found the back of the net and let out a cathartic scream that could have travelled all the way back to Manchester.
The ball from Bruno Fernandes reached him after a poor piece of defending, but that is the kind of good fortune the 22-year-old has needed. He initially had a look to see who was in support before taking the direct route to goal. His finish with his weaker foot was firm and accurate.
Hojlund put his thumb across his throat during his celebration, with the emotion writ large on his face. It was the death of one of the most frustrating United goal droughts of recent memory.
He last scored on December 12, coming off the bench against Viktoria Plzen to score twice on a night when he looked like a ready-made No.9 for Amorim. Since then, there have only been questions and admiring glances in the direction of Viktor Gyokeres, Victor Osimhen, and Liam Delap.
But there are different ways of measuring droughts, and while the clock and the fixture calendar don't look good for Hojlund, it is worth bearing in mind that he has been starved of service. Put Gyokeres in this team for the previous 21 games and he would have struggled to score more than maybe three or four more goals himself, and that is at the high end of the scale.
Because while Hojlund's goal drought has felt like it has lasted forever, it was only actually 21 shots between his last goal and this one. That isn't great for a striker, but it isn't disastrous. Garnacho had more than 50 shots in his 24 games between goals.
We have become accustomed to the look on Hojlund's face in recent weeks: bewilderment at yet another teammate's failure to find him. This problem was epitomised by Diogo Dalot's failure to square for a tap-in against Real Sociedad, but it has been a common one.
That is why a striker has 21 shots in 21 games. Maybe he could create his own chances every now and again, but Amorim wants his centre-forward to run the channels and play on the last line, ready to run behind just as Hojlund did to break the deadlock at the King Power Stadium.
In that system, he will only ever be as good as the service he receives, and until recently, that has been inadequate. But as with so much of this United team, there is a sense things are beginning to improve.
In those 21 goalless games, Hojlund registered an xG tally of just 2.5. His finishing wasn't great, but it was hardly the kind of numbers to use to write him off, either. It's not uncommon for goalscorers to have spells where their touch deserts them in front of goal.
On Thursday against Real Sociedad, he had three shots, hit an xG of 1.0 and should have scored. On Sunday, he did score. It had felt like it had been coming. The last time Hojlund broke a long run without scoring, he found he suddenly couldn't stop finding the back of the net.
If the service to him continues to improve under Amorim, with United showing signs of getting to grips with his 3-4-2-1 system, then goals for Hojlund could be back on the menu between now and the end of the season. What a difference that could make.