Man United leave Rasmus Hojlund heartbroken after keeping the full truth from him over exit
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Credit: Imago
Ben Palmer
Tue 2 September 2025 15:16, UK
Rasmus Hojlund was left in the dark over Man United’s true transfer intentions this summer and was left distraught ahead of his move to Napoli.
The Denmark international joined the Red Devils in August of 2023 for a fee of £72million from Atalanta [BBC Sport].
Despite having plenty of potential, Hojlund struggled immensely at Man United, scoring 26 goals across 95 appearances in all competitions.
The 22-year-old’s misfortunes in front of goal led to the Red Devils only managing to outscore the three relegated sides and Everton last season, and Ruben Amorim and his team prioritised signing a new number nine this summer.
Benjamin Sesko was bought by Man United after interest from Newcastle, joining for a fee of £73.7m [BBC Sport].
As a consequence, Hojlund was loaned to Napoli on deadline day and his temporary move will become permanent if certain conditions are met, with one of them being if Antonio Conte’s side qualify for the Champions League.
However, the former Atalanta man was devastated to be leaving Old Trafford this summer, and United kept the truth of their transfer intentions from him this summer according to The Athletic.
Credit: Imago
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As reported, Hojlund was “heartbroken” when he realised that his time at United was coming to an end, as he had begun pre-season with the expectation he would remain at the club.
The Red Devils had told the Danish forward of their intentions to sign a new striker, but he was “not directly told the club were looking to sell him”.
Credit: Imago
Instead, United targeted moves for Ollie Watkins and Sesko in the background, and Hojlund paid the price for scoring just 10 times in 52 Premier League games.
Reportedly the “massaging of the message” to the Dane was due to the fact that he was seen as a “nice guy”, as evidenced by his involvement in a community event in Chicago with teammates, despite being a “disconsolate” figure when away from the cameras.
Football Insider Verdict
United have replaced their tall, talented, young but raw, blonde-haired striker, signed for £70-odd million, with a tall, talented, young but raw, blonde-haired striker, signed for £70-odd million.
It feels like every transfer window, the Red Devils somehow make the same mistakes over and over again, without ever doing anything to rectify them.
Hojlund was one of the worst starting strikers in the Premier League, there is little doubt over that fact, but loaning him out and then selling him for a major loss while he is still only 22 feels incredibly short-sighted.
Credit: Manh Tung – Breaking Media
Had United pivoted by signing a more established and experienced option, maybe that would have made more sense, but replacing him with a carbon copy, a striker of the same prototype?
That is baffling.
It feels inevitable that Sesko will suffer the same fate as Hojlund.