It “must be s***” for Rasmus Højlund at Manchester United, says ex-defender

Former Manchester United defender Paul Parker has explained why he feels it “must be s***” for Rasmus Højlund at the moment due to two players.

Rasmus Højlund is Manchester United‘s current top scorer across all competition with seven goals, but much has been made about his lack of output in the Premier League.

The 20-year-old has scored in his last two fixtures of the competition but failed to do so in the 14 matches prior, with many pointing to the lack of service he gets under Erik ten Hag, playing alongside Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho.

Read More: INEOS’ temptation for “mega-talent” creates Manchester United transfer motivation

Garnacho has had a great individual season so far, providing some pivotal moments across the season, but former United defender Paul Parker feels that it “must be s***” for Højlund to play alongside Rashford and Garnacho.

“Honestly, it must be s*** to be Rasmus Højlund and play with those teammates. No strikers want to play alongside Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho,” Parker told Tipsbladet.

“I’ve seen that Roy Keane has said that Højlund hasn’t shown enough desire to score goals, but it must also be difficult when you never get the ball. However, I can see where Keane is coming from because Højlund sometimes doesn’t make the runs into the box, which is a weakness. He needs to improve on that.

“On the other hand, all Manchester United fans understand him. Why should he exert energy on it when he won’t get the ball anyway? I’ve said it before, but he needs to be more selfish. He should demand to get the ball every time.”

With Anthony Martial out for ten weeks after undergoing a groin surgery, Højlund is now the club’s only recognised striker in the senior squad.

Despite these words from Parker, Garnacho and Højlund have shown in the last two months that a budding partnership is forming between the pair, most notably towards the end of 2023 after their 3-2 comeback victory over Aston Villa.