Christmas challenge for Rasmus Hojlund goalless streak approaches 1000 minutes

Perhaps it was an unlucky 13th, bringing the Dane’s Premier League total to 13 appearances and no goals. He has 888 goalless minutes in the Premier League; if he fails to score against West Ham on Saturday, he will pass the 1,000-minute mark against Aston Villa on Boxing Day. Meanwhile, Harry Kane, the striker many thought United should sign but ultimately did not, has already scored 20 goals for Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga.

The comparison is not only irrelevant, but it is also detrimental to Hojlund. His United drought is tempered by the fact that he is the co-top scorer in the Champions League. That his goals were all in vain – and indeed, defeats – cost him some of the acclaim he deserved: a double in a barnstorming Old Trafford display against Galatasaray became a subplot in a humiliating defeat.

Despite an auspicious European campaign, Hojlund was dominated by Dayot Upamecano in Bayern Munich’s win at Old Trafford last week. The 20-year-old received 20 touches and was left looking like a rookie. He had done well in Europe up until that point.

And United paid for potential: perhaps overpaid, given that a fee of £72 million was higher than they had anticipated. It begs the question of whether they would have been better off switching targets to a more proven performer if the price had risen.

They scouted Randal Kolo Muani but decided Hojlund was a better No. 9 and had a higher ceiling. They were also aware that Paris Saint-Germain, who instead signed Kolo Muani, was bidding for Hojlund and that if and when Tottenham sold Kane, they might enter the race for coveted young strikers. So it was £72 million.

And first impressions were favorable. Hojlund’s 23-minute cameo against Arsenal was a promising start. He appeared to have scored his first goal at Old Trafford, only for it to be ruled out because the ball had gone out before Marcus Rashford could find him.

Nonetheless, he has felt a victim of United’s confused thinking and poor performances since then. Only two players in the Premier League have had more shots than Hojlund without scoring this season – and, predictably, one of them is Antony – but the statistics can serve as an indictment of his teammates, of the supposed supply line.

It’s almost Christmas, and Hojlund has fewer shots than Virgil van Dijk and fewer on goal than Mario Lemina. Frank Onyeka has more shots per 90 minutes, while Matty Cash has more on-target shots per 90 minutes. It is self-evident that there should not be 65 Premier League players with more shots on target than Manchester United’s star center-forward.