Denmark Coach: Højlund has demonstrated his suitability for Serie A

Rasmus Højlund trained hard during the summer holidays, and now he is reaping the rewards in the form of goals for Napoli.

National team striker Rasmus Højlund is on fire after transferring from Manchester United to Napoli five weeks ago, but the explanation for the striker's upswing can be found even earlier in the summer.

He revealed this on Wednesday evening at a press conference in the Hungarian city of Zalaegerszeg ahead of Thursday's World Cup qualifier between Denmark and Belarus.

"Not much else has happened other than me joining a good football team. I've played a lot, and it's gone really well. I've felt fit and sharp. I made sure I was ready, and I did a lot of things off the pitch during my summer holiday to be ready for the coming season.

‘I spent a week in Portugal with my father and younger brother, where we put on our running shoes and trained extra hard,’ says Rasmus Højlund.

So far, his statistics in Napoli are four goals in six matches, and he has been the match winner in the team's last two matches.

‘It's obviously great to be in such a period. In my position, I'm basically there to score goals. That's my job. When I step onto the pitch, I have extra confidence, and I'm obviously happy about that,’ says Højlund.

However, he does not feel that he has entered the national team camp this week with a different mindset than when he has previously arrived without so many fresh goals under his belt.

‘I don't know if there's a difference. Maybe there is in my subconscious. But I always try to tell myself that I'm a good footballer who can always score goals, regardless of whether I haven't scored in 20 matches or I'm on the run I'm on now,’ says Rasmus Højlund.

His strong start at Napoli prompted teammate Kevin De Bruyne to compare Højlund to Norwegian goal machine Erling Haaland, whom the Belgian previously played alongside at Manchester City.

Højlund breaks into a big smile on the press conference podium when he hears De Bruyne's comparison.

"Erling is perhaps the best striker in the world right now, so those are big words. I still have a lot to learn. I can see the comparison in that we are both left-footed and have similar playing profiles, but I still have a way to go before I can hold a candle to him," says the striker.

He spent two seasons at Manchester City in top form, scoring goals along the way.

National coach Brian Riemer does not believe that Højlund is better suited to Italian football than English football, but Napoli and the team's style of play are clearly a good match for the fast and physically strong striker.

"I think Rasmus has the quality for both leagues, without question. Does he fit into Italian football? Yes. There was no doubt about that, because he had already proven it. But that doesn't mean he doesn't fit into English football. On the contrary, I would almost say.

‘The fact that he is now on a well-functioning team and has players around him who take pride in making others good helps to determine the outcome for a striker like Rasmus, who needs to be served. That's more important than which league you play in,’ says Riemer.

For the national team, Højlund has scored nine goals in 28 matches since his debut in 2022. His most recent goal came in Athens in September, when Denmark beat Greece 3-0.