Manchester United hero Rasmus Hojlund is confident performances will improve when they get to spend more time on the training pitch with Ruben Amorim.
Hojlund came off the bench tonight to score twice in the final half hour and help United to a 2-1 Europa League win at Viktoria Plzen after goalkeeper Andre Onana had gifted the Czech hosts the opener.
The result enhanced United’s chances of an automatic qualifying spot for the knockout stages but it was another largely uninspiring display that, for long periods, threw up more questions than answers.
United’s passing was untidy, Onana made another basic error while Marcus Rashford was hauled off before he was sent-off.
Rashford’s withdrawal for Hojlund was the game’s turning point with United using the big Dane as a focal point previously lacking.
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It’s still early days – Hojlund
Asked to assess United’s progress under their new Portuguese boss, Hojlund told TNT Sports: “We still need more time. It’s still very early days. 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.”
Conditions at the Doosan Arena were not conducive to attracting flowing football with both teams struggling, particularly in a dire first 45 minutes.
“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,” added Hojlund.
“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.”
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Onana’s mistakes starting to become an issue for United
Onana’s form will be a concern for Amorim with the Cameroonian also at fault for two of Nottingham Forest’s three goals at Old Trafford on Saturday.
United captain Bruno Fernandes was not about to criticise Onana when asked about him afterwards, however.
Fernandes said: “We want to play from the back and everyone knows that then we have to make the right decision on the pitch. Andre [Onana] thought that Matta [De Ligt] could get on the ball but he missed it and they scored a goal.
“It is not about Andre making the mistake, we don’t look at individuals here when something happens on the wrong side. We have huge belief in him. He knows he made a mistake because he is a clever guy, he is going to help us many times and we trust his qualities on the ball.
“Mistakes are part of football. If they don’t happen then goals don’t happen. But we did well to show the resilience to come back and find the victory.”
Amorim pleased by United’s improvement
Amorim attributed the win to more urgency after half time. He said: “The speed improved. I told the players we need more movement in front because they have to feel we are a danger. We changed a little bit of our game and the players from the bench also helped. We improved not just the way we play, but also the speed of the game.
“We are improving in some details. We controlled the transitions very well. We were aggressive when we lost the ball. We need to spend more time near the opposition goal.”
