ESPN pundit Luis Miguel Echegaray does not think Rasmus Højlund is a 20-goal-a-season striker and has advised Manchester United’s incoming coach Rúben Amorim to sign a much bigger name center forward in the mould of Victor Osimhen.

Højlund joined Manchester United from Atalanta in August 2023, signing a five-year deal, with the option of a further year.

Since making his Reds debut in September 2023, the Denmark international has scored 18 goals in 55 games across all competitions, almost a goal every three games, statistically suggesting that he’s not the player to take Manchester United to the promised land.

Luis Miguel Echegaray feels the Scandinavian player is not the answer to United’s goalscoring issues, and has urged the club to bring in a marquee center forward.

Manchester United scored 57 goals in the 2023-2024 Premier League season, the fewest goals among the teams finishing in the top half of the table.

Manchester United were heavily linked with Osimhen before the capture of Højlund but it is believed the Old Trafford side were priced out of a move, with Napoli valuing the 2015 Fifa U17 World Cup winner at 130 million euros.

Echegaray has criticized United for passing up the opportunity to sign Osimhen and Aston Villa’s England international Ollie Watkins.

Speaking on ESPN FC Live, he said: “There’s no denying his talent but the biggest criticism of United from my side, leaving aside Erik ten Hag, leaving aside the management, is the recruitment.

“You had options to go into players like Victor Osimhen, even try to target someone like Ollie Watkins but you said no, I’m going to scout somebody else, I’m going to go in another direction.

“There’s no denying the talent of Højlund but is he going to be your main guy, that’s up to Rúben Amorim to decide but in my opinion the next step for United is to find a striker that can really echo and imitate everything that is being produced going forward.”

Osimhen has gotten off to a blistering start at Galatasaray, registering 12 goal involvements (8 goals, 4 assists) in 8 matches.

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Liverpool is interested in signing Nottingham Forest defender Murillo, irrespective of whether Virgil van Dijk stays at the club or leaves.

The 22-year-old Brazilian has made a big impression at Forest since moving to the City Ground from Corinthians last year and has played in every minute of his team’s 11 Premier League games so far this season.

It is claimed by CaughtOffside that Liverpool admires Murillo and views him as a possible replacement for Van Dijk, although the Reds could move for Murillo even if the Dutchman extends his stay at Anfield beyond the end of the season. The same report says that Sporting Lisbon’s Goncalo Inacio is also being looked at as a possible defensive addition to Arne Slot’s squad.

Regarding Van Dijk’s future, he is one of three key players who are set to become free agents at the end of the current campaign. Van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold have all been integral to Liverpool’s most successful period in decades, but all three players are into the final eight months of their contracts.

Of the three players, Van Dijk has been the most publicly vocal about his wish to stay at Liverpool, saying in September that he wants to remain at the club until at least the 2026 World Cup.

Then, last month he provided an update on negotiations: “I can say obviously discussions are ongoing, but I don’t know, we will see what happens in the future. My full focus is on Liverpool, wanting to win games that are ahead of me and nothing else. What the future will bring I have no idea at the moment. I can only tell you that discussions have been started and we will see.”

Alexander-Arnold said in September that he has no intention of letting his contract talks play out in public, while Salah, besides making a couple of statements that have been branded cryptic in some quarters, has not hinted at whether he would rather stay or leave.

Liverpool FC News

Atalanta BC, the 2023-24 Europa League champion, is preparing to extend a new contract offer to the forward representing the Super Eagles following the upcoming international break for the national team, as reported by Soccernet.ng.

The 27-year-old attacker has been delivering impressive performance for the Bergamo-based club since his arrival in the 2022 Summer transfer window, and he has so far scored 40 goals in total for the club.

In 2024, Lookman single handedly scored a hat-trick for Atalanta against Bayer Leverkusen which won the Europa League for Gian Gasperini’s men.

Following this, Atalanta has come to a conclusion to extend Lookman’s stay beyond 2026, following interests from top European clubs who are looking to bolster their squad with his skills.

Soccernet.ng earlier reported that the Italian side are looking to double his salary but there has not been any talks on the table with the former Everton forward’s signature.

Reports from Nigerian journalist Buchi Laba has reported that the Serie A club are looking to table an offer after the national duty for the Super Eagles. Meanwhile, this would include a release clause and an improve terms.

The calm Lookman is not in a rush to sign a new deal nor make an exit. But the club is trying to protest their interest as clubs will be coming for his signature soon.