The handwritten note which shows Rasmus Hojlund was destined for stardom: CHRIS WHEELER reveals the secrets of the Manchester United striker’s success

At Rasmus Hojlund’s childhood home in the Danish town of Horsholm, a handwritten note for a class project in Vallerod Skolen when he was 10 years old hangs on the wall.

At number 5 on a list of lifelong ambitions, Hojlund scribbled: “My goal is to play for the Danish national team and for Manchester United.” Within ten years he had done both.

Hojlund’s story is about a young man who is fiercely driven to achieve his goals. Upon arriving at Manchester United last summer, he declared that he wanted to ‘become a world-class striker as quickly as possible’.

Long before he honed the technical skills that would make him one of Europe’s most popular young centre-forwards, he showed the mental strength that has helped transform his career at Old Trafford.

The first of Hojlund’s two goals in United’s 2-1 win over Luton on Sunday after just 37 seconds made him the youngest player in Premier League history to score six games in a row, making him, among others, Manchester’s other Scandinavian star, Erling Haaland, overshadowed .

That is now seven goals in six league games for Hojlund. Eight out of eight in all competitions. Quite a turnaround for a player whose first fourteen league matches for United yielded nothing in terms of goals and assists.

It raised questions about the wisdom of United paying £72m for Hojlund last summer, the year after he joined Sturm Graz from his hometown FC Copenhagen for £1.5m, before moving to Atalanta for £15m.

There were concerns about installing Hojlund as United’s main striker at the age of 20, with little or no support from the perennially injured Anthony Martial. It was a huge burden to put on such young shoulders, especially after his medical showed the first signs of a small back fracture that delayed his debut.

Those who knew Hojlund growing up in Horsholm, north of Copenhagen, are not at all surprised by his ability to thrive in the face of adversity.

“It wasn’t his technical side, but the mental side,” said Morten Corlin, Hojlund’s youth coach at Brondby, who had to pull the teenager out of training more than once because of fighting.

“He was always at his best when we were at our worst; when we were in trouble or had a man sent away.’

Christian Mouroux witnessed the same qualities when he coached Hojlund at his boyhood club Horsholm Usserod Idraetsklub.

“Rasmus is someone who really likes a challenge, he grows every time you put him in deep water,” says Mouroux.

There is nothing but admiration in Denmark for Hojlund’s willingness to leave Copenhagen in his teenage years to experience a different country and culture in Austria and Italy, before United became his fourth club in less than two years.

However, it turned out to be a whole different level. United are a club with the ability to eat and spit out bigger names than Hojlund.

“If the Man Utd striker doesn’t score, there is more pressure on him than normal,” Ron Atkinson told Mail Sport on Monday. Gary Birtles, Peter Davenport and Alan Brazil were among the strikers who struggled under Atkinson at Old Trafford in the 1980s before United turned to Alex Ferguson.

“For the sake of argument, say it was Ollie Watkins at Aston Villa,” Atkinson continues. ‘He could go a few games without scoring and it wouldn’t be such a big problem.

‘There is more attention at United, but Hojlund looks full of life. It’s all forgotten now. It’s on fire.’

Since Ferguson retired, United have prioritized experience over youth: Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Cristiano Ronaldo, Radamel Falcao and Edinson Cavani are among the strikers who have had mixed success at Old Trafford.

Signing Hojlund, who just turned 21 earlier this month, marked a change in policy. In the first half of the season it was a move that seemed to backfire despite his five Champions League goals.

He struggled in a team hit by injuries and lacking form. The service to the new striker was poor at best. After United lost their last game before Christmas at West Ham and Hojlund was hooked in the 57th minute, it emerged that wingers Antony and Alejandro Garnacho were averaging less than one pass per game to their new teammate in the league.

However, club insiders say Hojlund’s confidence never wavered. They describe a down-to-earth young man with a maturity far beyond his years, who is comfortable interacting with the youth of the academy in Carrington, without any appearance or supporters, for example when he represents the club at Manchesterplatz- monument after United last played in Munich. September.

Typically, Hojlund rises to the challenge he faces. When he scored for the first time in the Premier League on Boxing Day, setting up a 3-2 goal against Aston Villa and setting off a tearful celebration, it was the start of a remarkable turnaround for Hojlund and United. His eight goals coincided with a run of seven wins in nine games. The only defeat at Nottingham Forest is the only one he has missed.

“I’ve never doubted myself, but of course you can be a bit down when you don’t score,” he said after Sunday’s double at Kenilworth Road.

Hojlund drew a terrible mistake from Amari’i Bell to score United’s fastest ever away goal in the Premier League in the opening minute, before showing excellent improvisation shortly afterwards to put Garnacho’s shot into the net.

His clinical results against Luton were in stark contrast to the failed effort just yards from goal when the two teams met at Old Trafford in November and his barren run in the Premier League showed no signs of ending.

But there was so much more to admire about his performance on Sunday. The way he held the ball up, connected the play and used his 6-foot-4 frame to bully defenders. He is in top condition after that delayed start and can run relentlessly.

“Hojlund looked like Haaland in the making: that power, that power and aggression in his running,” former United favorite Gary Neville told Sky Sports. ‘I’ve always liked that about a Manchester United centre-forward.’

There is no doubt that Hojlund will benefit from a more settled United side now that the injured players have returned – and from better service. Antony dropped out after the defeat at West Ham and has started one of the last seven in the competition, with Marcus Rashford and Garnacho favored on the wings.

His dedication to training is as strong as ever as he spent endless hours, in all weather conditions, on the pitches at Horsholm, often practicing the kind of instinctive finishing he used for that second goal against Luton.

He has listened to the advice of Ten Hag’s staff, particularly attacking coach Benni McCarthy, and requested a half-hour one-on-one chat with Robin van Persie to pick the former United striker’s brain when he visited Carrington as part of his UEFA Pro license earlier this month.

Hojlund is said to be committed to his recovery after matches, putting in long hours on the training pitch. He fits in well with the different groups within the team, but remains particularly close to fellow countrymen Christian Eriksen – described as a big brother – and Victor Lindelof.

Not that it stops him from expressing his emotions on the field. ‘I’m not afraid to say what I mean. I like to show character,” Hojlund said this month, adding that he avoids social media because “when you are in a bad time, it will usually be hate.”

Strong family support has also helped. At least one of his parents, father Anders and mother Kirsten, watches every match from the stands, and he can also turn to his childhood sweetheart Laura Rhod Sondergaard after they set up home together in Cheshire.

‘She came to live there in the winter. She gives me stability,” Hojlund said.

United is reaping the benefits of this. By scoring in six consecutive league games, Hojlund finds himself in esteemed company at Old Trafford alongside Ronaldo, Eric Cantona and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

The young man who arrived in Manchester last summer full of ambition to become world class is well on his way.