Man United’s new £72 million striker Rasmus Hojlund could struggle to get off the ground as he nurses back injury with the Dane a ‘work in progress’, says Chris Sutton on Mail Sport’s It’s All Kicking Off podcast
Man United’s new £72 million striker Rasmus Hojlund could struggle to get off the ground as he nurses back injury with the Dane a ‘work in progress’, says Chris Sutton on Mail Sport’s It’s All Kicking Off podcast
According to Mail Sport’s Chris Sutton, Rasmus Hojlund will soon come under great pressure at Manchester United if his back injury prevents him from getting off the ground.
United have paid £72 million for the Danish striker but, as Mail Sport exclusively revealed this week, he has a problem that will limit his playing time at the start of the season.
An MRI scan performed on Hojlund as part of his medical treatment revealed a stress response hot spot in his back, which can lead to more serious stress fractures in young players.
It means that Erik ten Hag will have to be careful about how often he plays against Hojlund for fear of making the problem worse.
Sutton expressed doubts about the 20-year-old’s scoring record and whether he is good enough for a United side in dire need of more goals.
Ian Ladyman (left) and Chris Sutton (right) discussed whether Manchester United’s new £72 million striker Rasmus Hojlund will have the desired impact amid injury fears
Hojlund will train at Carrington on Wednesday as he settles into life at Manchester United
Mail Sport’s It’s All Kicking Off podcast launches with a Premier League preview on Thursday
He told that to the brand new podcast It all starts: ‘That’s incredible. Much has been made about this signing, over £70 million in all.
“If you look at his record, it’s not like (Erling) Haaland signed for Manchester City, where he signed for them with a real goalscoring record.
“He was in Copenhagen, went to Austria with Sturm Graz for a season, wasn’t overly productive there, then Atalanta and he didn’t get into double digits. Nine goals in 30 games. That in itself is not an incredible success rate.
“I think he will be a work in progress and what doesn’t help is if he has come with a back injury because when you go to a big club you have to get off to a flying start and that’s going to be his problem.”
When asked by Mail Sport football editor Ian Ladyman whether United had wasted their money, Sutton replied: “I’m not saying they wasted their money, but it won’t help him to go to a club where the eyes are on him. go and start popping in the goals and he’s got an injury.
Mail Sport’s Chris Sutton fears Hojlund’s injury problem means he won’t get off the ground
The 20-year-old Dane scored nine goals during his season with Atalanta in Serie A
“It’s important to get his condition in order and to play a lot of matches, then you get into the rhythm.
“I’m not saying it affects strikers more than other positions, but he was bought to score goals at Manchester United, so the pressure is on.”
Hojlund will not be involved when United open their Premier League campaign at home against Wolves on Monday night and it was revealed on Wednesday that the game against Arsenal on September 3 could be his first appearance.
It’s All Kicking Off is an exciting new podcast from Mail Sport that promises a different take on Premier League football, with a preview show on Thursdays and every week this season.
It is available on MailOnline, Mail+, YouTube , Apple Music And Spotify
