In mythology, the golden age was a period of prosperity and abundance when everything fell into place effortlessly and helped make the era unique. Rasmus Hojlund’s recent run of form at the start of this season is something of a golden spell in footballing terms.
Instinctive, ruthless, unselfish and clinical in front of goal. The goals are coming thick and fast. He has bagged seven goals in nine games for Napoli and Denmark since 5 September. His very own golden spell, marking a stunning run of form that could reignite the 22-year-old Dane’s career.
Following in the footsteps of Scott McTominay and Kevin De Bruyne, Hojlund made the switch from Manchester to Napoli in the summer transfer window. With Romelu Lukaku sidelined with a serious injury, Antonio Conte was forced to go on the hunt for a new striker, and taking a punt on the Dane has paid off for both Napoli and the player, at least so far. “Napoli is exactly what I need in my career right now,” said the on loan Manchester United man during his first few weeks at the club.
Hojlund opened his official goalscoring account for the season with a goal against Greece, helping Denmark record their first victory in the UEFA qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 26™. He got himself on the scoresheet just 14 minutes into his Napoli debut against Fiorentina, signalling his intentions and ambitions from the word go.
The Napoli coach was instantly impressed by Rasmus’ work rate on and off the ball, and he has quickly become central to Conte’s tactical plans.
After a tough spell at Manchester United last season, when he never quite got going, the start of the new season and September has shown Hojlund is determined to get his career back on track. In October, he has been firing on all cylinders for club and country.
His brace against Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Champions League secured three vital points and saw the striker get back amongst the goals in Europe, where he aims to deliver his best. He scored the winner when Napoli overcame Genoa in their latest Serie A match and earned a recall to the national team.
With Scotland stringing together a run of decent performances and results in Group C of the UEFA World Cup qualifiers, the onus was on Denmark to come away with victory on the road against Belarus. Denmark put in an emphatic performance and cruised to victory, with Hojlund running the show. He scored his side’s second goal of the game in the 19th minute, added a third on the stroke of half-time, and provided the assist for Patrick Dorgu’s goal just before the break.
The Danish supporters named Hojlund their Player of the Match, his performance helping keep the national side sitting pretty at the top of the group on goal difference.
He has five goals and an assist to his name in three straight matches for Napoli and Denmark. Impressive numbers for a striker who struggled mightily last season in England, but now appears reborn and ready to show the world what he is capable of.
“I’m not a big fan of talking about my own performances,” Hojlund told TV2 following Denmark’s victory over Belarus. “As a striker, my main focus is on finding the back of the net and doing my bit for the team. I’m over the moon with how things are going right now. Today was a great team performance, not just down to me.”
Denmark coach Brian Riemer had already waxed lyrical about the striker ahead of the game in which he netted twice: “I’m thrilled to have a striker in such good form at my disposal. As Denmark’s coach, I really couldn’t ask for anything more. He’s got off to a flying start at Napoli, the current Serie A champions with big ambitions and expectations. He couldn’t have asked for a better start.”
With Hojlund in fine form, Denmark’s World Cup objective is coming into view.
