Manchester United hero Rasmus Hoglund is confident his performances will improve when he spends more time on the training pitch with Ruben Amorim.
Hoylund came off the bench tonight to score twice in the last half-hour and help United to a 2-1 Europa League win over Viktoria Plzeň after goalkeeper Andre Onana gifted the Czech hosts their opener.
The result boosted United's chances of qualifying directly for the knockout stages, but it was a largely uninspiring display that, for long periods, raised more questions than answers.
United's passing was sloppy, Onana committing another basic foul while Marcus Rashford was sent off before being sent off.
Rashford's withdrawal in favor of Hoglund was a turning point in the game as United used the great Dane as a focal point that had previously been missing.
4️⃣ Objectives
5️⃣ GamesVery interesting looking look for United's No.9 🧨🇩🇰#MUFC || #UEL
– Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 12, 2024
We are still in the early days – Hoglund
Asked to assess United's progress under their new Portuguese coach, Hoglund told TNT Sports: “We still need more time. It's still very early days. It's about getting our routines together and getting there. But it still needs to be done.” “To practice and time. I know it sounds strange, but we don't get enough time on the training field, so we have to train him during matches, but the situation is getting better and better.”
The conditions at Doosan Arena were not conducive to attracting smooth football as both teams struggled, especially in a difficult first 45 minutes.
“It was a bit difficult out there. It was very cold today and the pitch was a bit wet as well, but we managed to solve the problem in the second half,” Hoglund added.
“I think we didn't play very direct in the first half. We needed to play above them and behind them more because there was space to run into. Especially with the wet pitch I was talking about, if we win the second balls, you can play from there.”
Teamwork.#MUFC || #UEL pic.twitter.com/bAvKAHcR2H
– Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 12, 2024
Onana's mistakes are starting to become a problem for United
Onana's form will be a worry for Lamorim, as the Cameroonian also missed two of Nottingham Forest's three goals at Old Trafford on Saturday.
But United captain Bruno Fernandes was not about to criticize Onana when asked about it afterwards.
“We want to play from the back and everyone knows that we then have to make the right decision on the pitch,” Fernandes said. Andre (Onana) thought Mata (De Ligt) could get the ball but he missed it and they scored a goal.
“It's not about Andre making a mistake, we don't look at individuals here when something happens on the wrong side. We have a lot of faith in him. He knows he made a mistake because he's a smart guy, he will help us many times and we trust his qualities with the ball.
“Mistakes are part of football. If they don't happen, the goals won't happen. But we did a good job of showing resilience to come back and achieve victory.
Amorim is happy with United's improved performance
Amorim attributed the victory to greater urgency after the end of the first half. “The speed has improved,” he said. I told the players that we need more movement up front because they must feel that we are a threat. We changed our game a bit and the players from the bench helped us as well. We have improved not only the way we play, but also the speed of play.
“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 opponent’s goal.
