Shining in the Champions League, Hojlund achieves an unprecedented feat at MU

Forward Rasmus Hojlund reached an impressive milestone after shining to help Napoli secure victory over Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League.

Rasmus Hojlund has continued his remarkable goal-scoring form since leaving Manchester United. Recently, the striker on loan at Napoli scored twice, leading the Italian club to a 2–1 win against Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League.

At 22 years old, Hojlund has scored a total of 4 goals for both club and country since the start of the season. This was only his 8th appearance in the Champions League, following 6 matches during Manchester United’s disastrous 2023/24 group stage campaign. Despite the Red Devils' decline, the Danish striker still managed to net 5 goals.

However, all of Hojlund’s goals for Manchester United came in losing efforts. He scored once in a 3-4 defeat to Bayern Munich, and recorded two braces in 2-3 and 3-4 losses to Galatasaray and Copenhagen respectively. Therefore, his goal against Sporting also marked the first time Hojlund scored in a Champions League victory, which only deepens the disappointment among Manchester United fans.

To date, Hojlund has scored three goals in just five matches for Napoli, matching the number he scored in his last 35 appearances for Manchester United, according to statistics from Opta. This achievement owes much to Kevin De Bruyne, the former Manchester City midfielder. The Belgian star provided assists for both of Hojlund’s goals and delivered an excellent performance, regaining the trust of coach Antonio Conte.

Previously, De Bruyne was frustrated when substituted in the 72nd minute during a 1–2 loss to Milan last weekend, especially since a few weeks earlier he was taken off after just 26 minutes in a defeat to his former club Manchester City while Napoli played with a man down. The Belgian midfielder had scored from the penalty spot before being replaced, and Conte was displeased with his reaction.

In the latest Champions League win, De Bruyne was somewhat relieved by playing more minutes, boosting his tally to six goals and three assists for club and country this season.

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