Rasmus Hojlund used an Anthony Martial goal as inspiration for his winner to hand Manchester United victory against Viktoria Plzen.
Hojlund started on the bench but came on and made a game-changing impact with two goals helping United come from behind on a cold night in the Czech Republic.
His first was a tap-in after some clever work from Amad Diallo but his second came via a cleverly disguised pass from Bruno Fernandes at a free-kick that caught Plzen’s players off guard.
For Hojlund, while he had not practised that exact sequence with his team-mate, he had seen Martial score a similar goal in the past.
‘I have watched Bruno [Fernandes] do that before,’ the Danish striker told TNT Sports.
‘I remember the goal with Anthony Martial when he did the chip for him.
Rasmus Hojlund came off the bench to score a match-winning brace for Man United in Plzen
He was inspired by Anthony Martial (left) for the movement that led to his winning goal (Pictured: Martial celebrating scoring at Old Trafford against Manchester City in March 2020)
‘I just thought I had a good opportunity because I am strong, I could push the defender and spin him and finish.’
The Martial goal Hojlund is referring to came against bitter rivals Manchester City at Old Trafford in March 2020.
The Frenchman evaded the attention of Sergio Aguero and Fernandes was quick-witted enough to chip it over the wandering City players. In Plzen it was his quick-thinking again that put Hojlund through to score in the 88th minute.
It was a crucially important win for United in their hunt to go far in the Europa League.
But it was also a performance that left a lot to be desired, particularly in the first half where United looked sluggish and devoid of ideas when attacking.
‘We still need more time. It’s still very early days,’ he said of players adapting to the demands of new head coach Ruben Amorim.
‘It’s about getting our routines together and its getting there. But it still needs practice and time.
‘I know it sounds odd, but we don’t get enough time on the training ground, so we have to train it during the matches. But it’s getting better and better.’
Hojlund knows that despite the win the team must improve as they adapt to new methods
He continued: ‘It was a bit difficult out there. It was very cold today and the pitch was a bit boggy as well, but we solved it in the second half.
‘I think we didn’t play too direct in the first half. We needed to play over them and behind them more because there was space to run into.
‘Especially with the boggy pitch I was talking about, if we won the second balls, you can play from there.’
