Erik ten Hag is confident that Marcus Rashford and Rasmus Hojland can benefit from playing alongside each other and believes there is already a connection between the Manchester United forwards.
Hojland made his first start for the Red Devils during Saturday’s 3-1 defeat to Brighton at Old Trafford and was denied a goal on his full debut, after VAR deemed the ball had gone out of play in the build up.
The 20-year-old had turned home from Rashford’s cutback, with Ten Hag having opted for the duo in a forward partnership ahead of a diamond midfield.
Speaking ahead of Manchester United’s trip to face Bayern Munich in their Champions League opener, Ten Hag discussed the early understanding between the pair and believes both players can benefit from the attributes of the other.
“Yes, absolutely. The two can benefit from each other,” Ten Hag said at his pre-match press conference.
“But they have to know each other and that process has only just started. At the same time, we need results and so it has to go hand in hand.
“But we learn from every training [session] and we learn from every game. Of course, we reflect togetherness and, of course, we lead that as a coaching staff. But we have also seen that Rasmus and Rashy are together, they’re talking about how they can benefit from it.
“So you can see that discussion, that interaction on the pitch is going on, and that is a good sign. I’m sure they will get that connection. I think the connection is already there but I think they will get there.”
