Erik ten Hag recorded a crucial victory over Aston Villa on Tuesday evening. After trailing 0-2 halfway through, everyone at Old Trafford had probably already given up given their form, but a double from Alejandro Garnacho and the first goal in the Premier League resulted in a victory. And the latter fell into the hands of the coach after the final whistle.
Højlund had a difficult start in England despite Manchester United paying around eighty million euros for the Dane. So far he has only scored in cup competitions for the English club, who have been in poor form in recent weeks. When a left-foot corner arrived after two goals from Garnacho, he shot it hard against the ropes from the inside of the post with some good fortune. Ten Hag came to congratulate him immediately after the final whistle.
Article continues below video
Højlund celebrated the goal as if he had won the Champions League and was still on cloud nine after the game. “I am the happiest man on earth,” the attacker smiled. “You could also see that when cheering. But we kept believing until the end and showed a lot of character again.”
The fact that there was a lot of criticism of Højland in England undoubtedly played a role in his explosion of joy. “As the manager said: I have already scored in the Champions League, but fortunately now I have finally also scored in the Premier League. I’m happy to have scored my first goal and hope I can build on that.”
