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Would Hojlund Have Joined Manchester United Without His Agent?
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Would Hojlund Have Joined Manchester United Without His Agent?

Would Hojlund Have Joined Manchester United Without His Agent?

Agents are the vigilante’s of the football world. They do all the hard work that no one notices behind the scenes - brokering deals, ensuring player welfare, organising advertising, sponsorship and publicity events, and generally making sure that both their players and their respective clubs both get the best value for their money.

But every now and then, agents can swindle people. They can coax extortionate sums of money out of clubs for players that should cost half the amount, while they can also prove to be a barrier for players, keeping them or advising them to move against their will.

One such example is the agent of Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund, Kees Vos. The Dutchman, labelled by the media as a “super agent”, took on the responsibility of finding Hojlund a big move in the summer of 2023, after the Danish international had netted 10 times for Atalanta at just 20 years of age.

Vos id the owner of SEG management agency, a company focused on nurturing the careers of some of the biggest characters in football, cycling and esports. Vos’ responsibility was simple - find the Dane a high profile move while his stock was high. Given that Hojlund was being tagged as the next Erling Haaland, this didn’t prove hard.

What appeared significantly tricker was persuading Hojlund’s parents - Anders and Kirsten sat down with him for no less than six interviews before they finally decided he was the right man to help their son make a name for himself.

Less than a month after the decision was made, Vos had secured Hojlund an eye-watering £72 million move to Manchester United. However, would Hojlund have ended up in England at all without Vos and SEG? Were they conned into overpaying? And was the move the right decision?

Should Hojlund have Gone to Man United?

Even at the best of times, £72 million is a lot of money. Clubs do painstaking research and learn everything about their target before they finally agree to stump up a big sum of cash. This is why United’s move for Hojlund was seen as a risk. With only one full season of senior football under his belt, and still so young, there was no guarantee the move would be a success.

Typically, young players who break through in foreign leagues tend to stay there until their early mid-20’s. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Paul Pogba, Gianliugi Donnarumma and countless others all moved to foreign leagues for eye-watering transfer fees closer to the age of 25.

The reason for this, as is most other leagues, is to allow the young player in question to develop. Though they may impress for a season, the sample size simply isn’t big enough to conclude whether they would be a success elsewhere, and with a skill set that will naturally be refined over time, it is a better bet to leave the player be for two years or so and then check back in to gauge their progress.

Of course, some clubs want to by-pass this option in the hope that they can develop the player themselves despite their lack of experience, with the benefit of paying a reduced fee for a player with little senior football experience. It is safe to say that United haven’t succeeded at either.

Despite top scoring for United last campaign, Hojlund has scored just three times since December, a period which saw him go on a 21 game goal drought. Clearly, the young Dane is not yet ready to compete week in week out in the Premier League.

They should have sat back, allowed another Serie A side to purchase and improve him for a couple of seasons, come back, and still spent the same sum of money on a player multitudes more complete than the Hojlund they are stuck with right now.

Did United Overpay?

And that brings us to the transfer fee - why did United spend so much on an unproven striker with one season of experience if they knew there was a risk he would never fulfil his potential after such a move so early in his career?

This is where Vos played a key role - his job was to persuade both player and club that the move would be a success for all parties, clearly a job he takes very seriously and does extremely well. It is not unexpected - SEG have had ties with Pep Guardiola, Erik Ten Hag, Robin Van Persie and Cody Gakpo, high profile names that will always want to get the most out of a deal.

Clearly, Vos focused the spot-light effectively on Hojlund talents, and conveniently ignored the caveats that accompany any move for a young player - development, price, and most importantly, the necessity of the move.

In his defence, Hojlund specifically stated that he would employ SEG and Vos to get him a move to United and nowhere else, otherwise he would change agency. Vos duly delivered on his promise, but clearly, the young Dane had overestimated himself.

In United and Hojlund’s case, it seems here that Vos went a bridge too far, securing a move for his client that came a number of seasons too early.

Was the Move the Right Choice?

In short, no. Hojlund would have been far better off developing his skills in a league he was already familiar with, rather than uprooting everything in order to move to a club on the other side of the continent, and moreover one already with financial troubles and a fading presence amongst Europe's elite.

Had Napoli, Roma, AC Milan or Juventus come knocking, there is almost no doubt that the fee would have been lower. With clubs from England receiving more funding than any other club perhaps besides Real Madrid and Barcelona, the transfer fee is always going to be slightly raised when an English club comes knocking, providing the selling club with a nice influx in their transfer budget.

And although a move to a fellow Italian giant would have made Hojlund a maligned figure amongst the Atalanta fan base, he would have been playing against largely the same opposition season after season, allowing him to focus and develop the foundations he layed in 2022/23.

The Premier League, widely regarded as the most physical out of Europe’s top five league, was a poor choice for Hojlund at the time - though he was tall, he was of slight build, and his 14 game goalless streak at the start of his spell in England’s top flight suggested that he didn’t have the stature or nous to survive long term in Manchester.

And so it has proved to be this season. Despite showing flashes of brilliance last campaign, Hojlund’s form has fallen off a cliff, particularly in 2025.

With another young, expensive Serie A forward struggling in Joshua Zirkzee, United are stuck between a rock and a hard place with their striker lineup.

The two players, who’s transfer fees add up to over £100 million, don’t have any Premier League experience, are still very young and much to develop, and most importantly don’t have any confidence that they can do well up against elite Premier League defenders.

Agents control the world of football transfers, and 90% of the time, they get it about right. But Rasmus Hojlund’s move to Manchester United is a case study in what not to do as an agent. While he secured himself, his client and Atalanta a big payday, he neglected to consider whether the move was the right thing to do, and although Hojlund still has plenty of time left to prove himself in his career, United’s patience will be starting to wear thin.

He has two games remaining this season to show he does in fact belong at Man United, but with Zirkzee returning from injury and likely to lead United's lineup against Spurs in tomorrows Europa League final, there is no telling if he will even get on the pitch for the Red Devils last 180 minutes of the season.

Benji Kosartiyer
Journalist
Harry Pascoe

Lead Writer

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