29 July 2023 , 19:27
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Manchester United have signed Rasmus Hojlund from Atalanta in a deal rising to £72million.
United have agreed an initial fee of £64m for the Denmark striker, with a potential further £8m payable if performance-related add-ons are met. The deal ends United's summer-long search for a striker, with Hojlund having agreed a five-year deal, with the option of an extra year.
Hojlund becomes United's third signing of the summer, after midfielder Mason Mount and goalkeeper Andre Onana, taking the club's total spending this summer to £179m. The 20-year-old is expected at United's Carrington training complex within the next 48 hours to undergo a medical and finalise the deal, before he starts training with his new team-mates.
Hojlund could make his United debut at Old Trafford, in a friendly against French side Lens next Saturday and will be available for the start of the new season – just as boss Erik ten Hag wanted.
Atalanta initially wanted £86m for Hojlund, but United were able to drive the price down to a level at which they were comfortable, as they also did with the Mount and Onana deals.
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United insist all three arrivals were Ten Hag's first-choice in all three positions and do not anticipate any more arrivals this summer, with the focus on shifting fringe players to raise funds.
With tougher Financial Fair Play rules restricting United's spending this summer to around £120m, the club must now raise more than £50m in player sales to fall within the regulations.
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Rasmus Hojlund is set to join Manchester United in a deal worth up to £72m (JURE MAKOVEC/AFP via Getty Images)Hojlund managed just nine goals in Serie A last season, but Ten Hag believes he can develop the raw young forward into a world-class striker and prolific goalscorer under his tutelage.
The news that a deal has been agreed will be welcomed by Ten Hag, who has previously admitted his team are lacking a goalscorer. The Dutchman's latest plea for a new attacker came following the friendly defeat to Real Madrid.
"It's always difficult to say. We are working 24-7. We do and everyone, well not everyone, but a lot in the club, and we give all the power to get this done. We never talk about players under contract with another club, so we have our targets in the background," he said.
"We are busy with it to get the right player to sign a contract for us. We are now 10 days on our way, nine days, I don't even know. We work hard, we work intense so we don't have time to count the days, but I think the team spirit is good.
"We are in the right direction and we are moving well. The pressing can be better from from the start and and scoring goals. I think we need more players who are capable to be in one-on-one. And we had the situations, one-on-ones."