Manchester United were pegged back late on by Olympique Lyonnais in their Europa League quarter-final first leg tie on Thursday as the thrilling encounter finished 2-2.
Joshua Zirkzee’s 88th minute strike should have been enough for the visitors to head back to Manchester with a goal advantage but Andre Onana had other ideas.
Termed the worst goalkeeper in United’s recent history by Lyon’s Nemanja Matic before the game, the Cameroonian was at fault for both the goals conceded on the night and he proved the moniker correct.
His inadequacies also hid the fact that Rasmus Hojlund endured another miserable night as he fluffed his lines time and again and looked incapable of leading the line for a club of United’s size.
Another Rasmus disasterclass
He completed two passes in 60 minutes and was rightly substituted for Zirkzee who got on the scoresheet as well. The Dane has a paltry two Premier League goals since Ruben Amorim took charge and the head coach is far from pleased with the Dane.
He wants him gone in the summer and there is interest from Italian clubs with Napoli reportedly open to a swap deal arrangement involving Victor Osimhen heading to Old Trafford in return.
Juventus are also eyeing the 22-year-old with Tuttomercatoweb claiming United will look to raise as much as €60 million from the former Atalanta star’s sale.
The Turin-based club would prefer a loan move but INEOS need the money as they look to reinvest in the squad and hence, a loan exit seems to be off the cards.
“Are Juventus really after Rasmus Hojlund, the Danish striker from Manchester United? The player is popular for several reasons: he has already played in Serie A, he is young and needs to be regenerated, he earns relatively little for a centre forward – around 4.5 per year – and the Red Devils have put him on the market for next summer.
Price tag set for summer exit
“There has been no direct contact between the teams, nor with those close to the player. Hojlund could be a good choice in the event of Vlahovic’s farewell, but his valuation is certainly not low: United are selling him, yes, but for 60 million euros.
“There is no opening for a loan because United needs to raise money , especially to finance the incoming market.”
The price seems quite far-fetched as United’s co-owners are aware of the fact that Hojlund’s value has tanked due to his miserable form and they will likely find it difficult to recoup the initial £64 million they paid in 2023.
Either way, interest in the Denmark international will please Amorim, who needs a ruthless goalscorer heading into next season.
Feature image Michael Steele via Getty Images
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Ayantan Chowdhury
Ayantan has worked for 10 years in the Indian sports media industry, writing for the biggest newspapers and websites but his heart was always set on writing about his favourite club. Currently an editor at The Peoples Person. You can follow him on X: @ayantanc_25
