Hojlund's fight to answer Man Utd's striker question

Rasmus Hojlund is about to face a match at the stadium that will host next year's World Cup final.

Manchester United's friendly with West Ham at MetLife Stadium, in the grand scheme of things, is nowhere near as big a deal. But for the Danish striker, it's crucial.

A crowd approaching 50,000 is anticipated for United's opening game in the four-team Premier League Summer Series on Saturday evening, just west of New York City.

Hojlund's performance could determine whether head coach Ruben Amorim keeps faith with him as United's attacking spearhead.

United have spent more than £120m on forward players this summer - but three weeks before the start of the new Premier League season, do not have the number nine many informed observers believe they are desperate for.

They were frustrated in their efforts to sign Liam Delap - who left Ipswich for Chelsea instead. And on Friday, Amorim hinted Hojlund remains his first choice for the role.

Is he up to the task?

In May, United finished 15th in the Premier League, their worst final placing since relegation from the top flight in 1974. A Europa League final defeat by Tottenham compounded the disappointment.

Vast improvement has to come - Amorim accepts as much.

And for that to happen, his side must score more goals. They managed only 44 in the league last season.

The week before last, minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe met chief executive Omar Berrada and technical director Jason Wilcox in Iceland. It is probably fair to assume the centre-forward position was discussed.

And there is no doubt they wanted Delap. United have been targeting the domestic market because Amorim is keen to add players who do not need time to adapt to the Premier League. But Chelsea sealed the deal.

Since then, the names of numerous alternatives have been advanced.

Viktor Gyokeres was thought of as a target from the moment Amorim was appointed, given how successful the pair were together at Sporting after the 27-year-old had impressed in the Championship with Coventry.

But Gyokeres is heading to Arsenal.

Nicolas Jackson's name keeps being mentioned in connection with United. There have been conversations about the Chelsea forward, but not to the point where it has looked as if United might try to buy him.

Aston Villa quickly shut down a link to their forward Ollie Watkins, letting it be known they have no interest in selling. Could United put that to the test?

Watkins is an interesting case because he slipped down the pecking order at Villa when Marcus Rashford - unwanted by Amorim - arrived on loan.

Would a more expensive Watkins, 29, who has scored 75 goals in 184 Premier League games be a better option that a cheaper Jackson, who has been excellent and erratic at Chelsea, often both in the same game?

Former Everton striker Moise Kean, who re-established his reputation in Serie A with Fiorentina, Randal Kolo Muani, back at Paris St-Germain and unwanted after a loan spell with Juventus, and Crystal Palace's Jean-Philippe Mateta are all likely to be available.

The same is true of RB Leipzig's Benjamin Sesko, although Newcastle is a more likely destination for the Slovakian.

Then there are the wildcard options - out-of-contract forwards such as Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Jamie Vardy.

But none of these options come without risk. And for United, funds are limited and there are so many weaknesses to address.

Amorim referred to the need for more energy in midfield after last Saturday's 0-0 draw with Leeds in Stockholm.

Amorim didn't mention the additional issues, but others have: Goalkeeper, central defence, the right-sided wing-back role. The list goes on.

Not all of this can be dealt with in a single transfer window. It is quite possible 12 months from now, if he is still in post, Amorim will still be looking to address flaws that exist now, as well as those that emerge in the coming months.

Funds are precious and United need to raise some.

They might have generated around £30m this summer through sell-ons being activated for Alvaro Carreras, who has left Benfica for Real Madrid, Anthony Elanga joining Newcastle and Maxi Oyedele moving to Strasbourg - plus the covering of Rashford's wages for the season by his loan move to Barcelona - but more needs to be done.

Rashford was one of five unwanted players effectively cast out of the first-team picture by Amorim - the other four being Jadon Sancho, Alejandro Garnacho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia. More money could be generated by selling those four - but Amorim has warned that they won't be allowed to leave on the cheap.

Garnacho is a player capable of generating a sizeable fee - albeit not the £60m United went into the summer hoping for. He may be pivotal, especially if Chelsea go back for a player they were close to signing in January.

But for now, Amorim has to maximise what he has.

Against Leeds in Sweden, 18-year-old Chido Obi started. But the former Arsenal youngster currently appears to be an impact player.

Hojlund took over for the second half. As usual, he worked hard enough, didn't receive the service a centre-forward would want and did his best for the team.

But, as usual, he didn't score. He has scored 26 goals in 95 competitive appearances over two years at United - just over a goal every four games.

The numbers are not terrible. But they include a run of five goals in four games last season and eight in eight the campaign before. Statistics can be manipulated to suit any argument - but if those two sequences are taken out, what is left is 13 goals in 83 appearances, or more than six games for every goal. That is clearly not good enough.

The question is whether Hojlund can extend the more productive spells or if they are distorting the overall picture.

On Friday, Amorim gave the impression he has not given up on the 22-year-old, who cost United £72m when they bought him from Serie A outfit Atalanta in 2023.

In his opening media engagement of the summer in Chicago, United's head coach made a couple of significant points.

Firstly, he insisted he would be happy to go into the new season with his current squad. In truth, he couldn't say anything else given there are no guarantees of further signings.

Secondly, he confirmed his belief that his attacking reinforcements, Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha, could both operate as a spearhead in addition to the number 10 roles they appear best suited to.

But it was towards the end of a long unrelated answer, in connection to captain Bruno Fernandes, that Amorim might have given an indication about his thinking.

The coach wants Fernandes to operate deeper, away from those two prized number 10 spots. He thinks the Portuguese can cause more damage that way because he won't be marked as tightly.

"If you have the threat of players; of Rasmus, Matheus and Brian, in the space and a player with Bruno's quality on the ball, it's really important," he said.

Events can change course quickly at Old Trafford but at the very least, the namecheck suggested Hojlund is likely to get some time on the pitch with Cunha, Mbeumo and Fernandes at the MetLife and beyond.

And if he finds a spark across a trio of pre-season fixtures against West Ham, Bournemouth and Everton over the next nine days, it may cause United's hierarchy to pause and think.

To a greater or lesser degree, the search for a striker has been a feature of their summer.

Can Hojlund prove he is the answer after all?