Over the seasons, every football club will have had one or two signings which they may feel haven’t performed to the standards that they initially expected.
However, in the case of Manchester United, this has happened on more than one occasion in recent times. So, when a signing made by Erik ten Hag has actually worked out for the better, it comes as quite a shock.
Players such as £86m man Antony – for instance – have cost the Red Devils a small fortune without making a notable impact on the side – the Brazilian scoring just once in all competitions this season.
A signing made in the 2023/24 summer transfer window, however, has gone against the grain and proved his worth to Ten Hag’s squad.
How much Rasmus Hojlund cost Man United
That player is, unsurprisingly, Rasmus Hojlund. Since arriving at Old Trafford, he has seen his stock rise considerably.
After joining the club for a fee in the region of £72m, there was a lot of pressure upon the shoulders of the then-20-year-old following his move from Atalanta.
Prior to joining the Red Devils, the striker had only played one season in Europe’s top five leagues and that was whilst he was in Bergamo, having plied his trade for Sturm Graz and FC Copenhagen before that.
The Denmark international had a fairly prolific season in Italy and managed to score ten goals in 34 games. Despite this, the striker had something of a slow start to Premier League life and only managed to score his first top-flight goal on Boxing Day against Aston Villa.
Since getting over that first-goal hump, however, the 21-year-old has managed to bag a further six goals for United and has scored in six consecutive top-flight clashes, with two coming in his most recent game against Luton Town.
Thanks to this good run of form, the in-form striker has seen his value scale up and is proving to be a very smart piece of business by Ten Hag – even if he has now been struck down by a ‘small injury’ that will keep him sidelined for two to three weeks.
As aforementioned, this recent sharp increase in form – prior to the recent injury setback – has had a positive impact on his value as he now finds himself worth more than star-man, Bruno Fernandes.
The current market value of Rasmus Hojlund
As per the CIES Football Observatory, the striker is now worth €100m (£85m) whereas fan favourite, Fernandes, is only worth €80m (£68m).
This may come as a shock to most as, more often than not, Fernandes is among United’s best players and is always one of the first names on the team sheet, having started 25 league games this term.
Additionally, as Hojlund is still a relative youngster, there is plenty of room for him to develop, and it feels as if Manchester United have found their striker for many years to come.
Due to his recent performances, he has been lauded by many, with fellow teammate, Harry Maguire, deeming the youngster as “exceptional.”
“We’ve seen the talent he has, and now it is really clicking for him in front of goal,” the former Leicester City defender said. “We always knew that was going to come because he’s an exceptional talent
“He’s going to be a big player for this club. I’m sure he’ll keep scoring goals and there are many more to come.”
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Receiving this level of praise from a player as experienced as Maguire is a testament to how well Hojlund is playing and shows that not all of Ten Hag’s transfer decisions have been below par during his time at Old Trafford.