Antonio Conte has explained that Rasmus Højlund is already learning a trait he failed to use during the striker’s two-year spell at Manchester United.
Manchester United loanee Rasmus Højlund struck twice for Napoli in their 2-1 Champions League victory over Sporting CP on Wednesday night.
The Danish striker has now netted three times in his first five appearances for the Italian side after joining on loan in the summer. Napoli’s deal includes an option to buy, which becomes an obligation if they secure Champions League qualification.
Should that clause be triggered, United would receive around £43 million in total, factoring in the loan fee already paid.
Although Højlund had hoped to remain at Old Trafford, the signing of Benjamin Šeško made it clear he was no longer part of United’s plans.
Conte full of praise for Højlund after brace vs Sporting
While Højlund’s raw talent and athletic abilities were never really in question for United, the striker left as it felt he would never be able to make it at Old Trafford. Too often, he was found struggling against the physicality of the Premier League, instead of using his pace to get in behind.
However, Napoli boss Antonio Conte has explained that the “serious player” is starting to learn how to attack the space behind centre-backs, which is something he failed to do consistently at United.
“Rasmus is a 22-year-old player with significant potential,” the Italian manager said, via il Napolista.
“What he can do — if he’s willing, and we’ll let him find it because he’s a serious player — is that he has significant room to grow.
“He’s starting to understand the right positioning, how to attack the depth. We lost Lukaku, who was a cornerstone of the Scudetto: I spoke to him and I also offer my condolences on the death of his father. Romelu isn’t there; we started the season with significant absences.”
De Bruyne agrees with Højlund’s improvement
Conte is not the only senior Napoli name to sing the praises of Højlund after his goalscoring exploits with the Naples club. Former Manchester City star and current teammate Kevin de Bruyne has also been complimenting the Dane’s potential.
“I was trying to get into that space for the first goal and was waiting for the right moment to pass it to Rasmus, luckily he did the rest,” De Bruyne said following the 2-1 win.
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“I think Rasmus is growing a lot and is very similar to [Erling] Haaland. I think they are very similar because they both like to attack the depth.
“Maybe Højlund comes to play the ball towards us more, but I think he needs to attack the space a lot because he can score and give us a big hand.”
Clearly, Conte has been asking Højlund to simply rely on one of his best traits – his speed – to break past defensive lines and trust his creative teammates to find him. It’s something you never really saw from the 22-year-old at Old Trafford.
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