Cristiano Ronaldo certainly has many admirers in the world of soccer. Still, a recent interview revealed that a player on loan from Manchester United has long considered CR7 one of the greatest inspirations of his career.
Rasmus Hojlund Explains Reasons for Idolizing Cristiano Ronaldo
In an interview with Sports Illustrated (via Goal.com), Rasmus Hojlund revealed that Cristiano Ronaldo is his “biggest idol,” motivating him to leave Atalanta and sign with Manchester United in 2023 in an effort to repeat the Portuguese striker’s success.
Hojlund won the FA Cup title and reached the UEFA Europa League final in his first season with Manchester United. In the following season, however, he faced significant challenges establishing himself amid a crisis at the club. This led to his loan move to Napoli, where he went on to win the Serie A title in the 2024/25 season.
“Obviously Cristiano is my biggest idol. I think I’ve tried to learn a bit from him. We’re not the the same sort of player but in terms of mentality and his hunger for goals and like that sort of sense. I just think he’s so cool to be fair. I think since I was young me and my friends have always looked up to him because of the way he carries himself, his self-confidence and his mentality. He thinks he’s the best even though some people might not think that.”
“He doesn’t give an F about anything he just wants to keep improving, improving, improving. I really admire that about him. I’ve only met him once or twice and that was when we played them with the national team when I did his celebration. I haven’t really spoken to him but I would love to one day.”
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After Manchester United excluded him from their plans following the arrivals of Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha, and Benjamin Sesko, Hojlund moved on loan to Napoli. There, Cristiano Ronaldo’s mentality helps him regain top form in Italy and boosts his confidence to score decisive goals. The Dane plays an instrumental role in Napoli’s tactical setup and could secure his place in the team if they qualify for the next UEFA Champions League.
Hojlund is a Danish striker with excellent physicality, acceleration, and finishing. He combines speed with box presence, making deep runs to beat defensive lines, exploiting space behind, and accelerating in transition, making him a constant counterattack threat.
Additionally, he has a good conversion rate on shots inside the box and a natural instinct to position himself in dangerous areas, finishing in one-on-one situations. In the 4-1-4-1 tactical formation, with constant support through the middle, including creative players such as Kevin De Bruyne, Hojlund has made a greater impact by receiving more opportunities to shoot.
