Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund came off the bench to grab the winner as Denmark beat Portugal 1-0 in the first leg of their Nations League quarter-final at the Parken stadium.
Hojlund has endured a troubling season at United, only scoring three Premier League goals.
He has struggled to live up to expectations following his £72m transfer from Atalanta in the summer of 2023 and just broke a 21-game goal drought in last weekend’s 3-0 victory over Leicester City.
There was hope that Hojlund would carry his newfound confidence away with him to link up with the Denmark national team for a two-legged Nations League play-off, the first of which took place on Thursday evening.
Denmark fashioned the most chances and United midfielder Christian Eriksen had a first-half penalty saved by Portugal goalkeeper Diogo Costa.
Eriksen had another promising sight of goal but his effort, which seemed to be going in, was cleared by club teammate Diogo Dalot.
Denmark boss Brian Riemer looked to his bench and brought on Hojlund, with around 20 minutes of regular time left on the clock. Hojlund wasted no time in impacting the game. Eriksen picked out Andreas Skov Olsen on the right of the box, inviting him to square the ball to Hojlund, who made no mistake from close range with his right foot.
To rub salt on the wounds of the Portugal players and Ronaldo in particular, Hojlund cheekily performed the five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s trademark “siu” celebration.
Ronaldo could only stare, hands on his hips, as the United No. 9 taunted him.
Rasmus Hojlund really hit Cristiano Ronaldo’s “I’m here” and “SIUUU” celebrations after scoring the winner for Denmark vs. Ronaldo’s Portugal 🥶
Man United heritage 😅 pic.twitter.com/tetPiP95hx
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) March 20, 2025
During the time he was on the pitch, Hojlund fired two shots – one which ended into the back of the net while the other didn’t require Costa to intervene as it went wide.
The 22-year-old could missed one big chance, touched the ball eight times and successfully completed all three passes that he attempted.
Hojlund lost the only ground duel he contested and was also outmuscled in his lone aerial challenge.
(Stats obtained from Sofascore)
The two sides meet again on Sunday and it’s promising to be a thrilling encounter.
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Derick Kinoti Derick Kinoti is a football writer at The Peoples Person who has covered Manchester United and the game extensively for many years. He is a keen analyst with expertise in SEO and journalism standards. Derick is convinced Wayne Rooney is the true GOAT and won’t hear otherwise!
