Erik ten Hag has explained why he substituted Rasmus Hojlund off during the defeat to Brighton.
Manchester United suffered their third defeat in five games last time out, losing comfortably to Brighton in the end. The pressure continues to grow on Erik ten Hag.
The game could have been oh so different, if a Rasmus Hojlund goal was allowed to stand. Sadly, the ball just trickled out of play before Marcus Rashford crossed the ball into the Dane.
United’s new striker actually led the line pretty well, considering the fact that this was his first start, in a new league, playing under a new manager, learning a new system. The fact that he’s still so young will likely lead to some inconsistent performances, though it’s up to our fans to remain patient.
Perhaps the biggest talking point of the match came just after the hour mark, as Hojlund was substituted off. It was met by a chorus of boos from the Old Trafford Faithful, as the Reds manager decided to withdraw their biggest goal threat.
After the game, Ten Hag has explained the decision to sub off Hojlund, due to the fact that he’s still not ready for a full game after only recently overcoming injury.
Check out what Erik ten Hag had to say in full here:
‘I think it’s good that they gave this signal, this message. It’ll give him belief, Rasmus. But everyone knows he came with a small issue. We built him over last three, four weeks, he’s not ready for full game.’ Ten Hag told the media, including The Metro.
‘We have many games to play in a short period, we also have to build his fitness.’
Honestly, it makes sense. You don’t want to rush Hojlund back too quickly, then risk losing him for a prolonged period of time because he wasn’t quite ready.
As brutal as it was to see him subbed off in the moment, you have to think about the long term. Hojlund is meant to be someone who can lead the line at United for potentially the next decade, so we have to gradually build him up to fitness.
Like the gaffer says, the matches are coming thick and fast right now. We’re going to need Hojlund on Wednesday in Bavaria, for example.
Do you think Rasmus Hojlund played well yesterday? Let us know your thoughts in the comment box below.
