“Here we go!”: Rasmus Hojlund agrees loan switch to Napoli – Romano

Manchester United striker Rasmus Hojlund has agreed a loan move to Serie A champions Napoli, Fabrizio Romano reveals.

United have been locked in negotiations with their Italian counterparts over the past week on the exact formulation of the loan deal for Hojlund.

The club would have preferred a permanent exit for the Denmark international but there was acceptance that his dismal form over the past twelve months made this a difficult task.

Instead, a loan with an obligation to buy clause was pursued after Napoli identified Hojlund as a key target following Romelu Lukak’s serious injury in pre-season.

The Neapolitan side would only agree to the buy obligation, however, under specific conditions with Champions League qualification at the end of the season thought to be the trigger for the clause.

Romano reveals a “verbal agreement” has now been reached with all parties over a loan with a €6 million fee and a €44 million buy option which becomes “mandatory under certain conditions”.

– Saturday, 30 August 2025

Tweet: “BREAKING: Rasmus Højlund to Napoli, here we go! Verbal agreement done between all parties involved. Loan deal for €6m fee with buy option clause to become mandatory under certain conditions worth €44m. Højlund said yes to Napoli days ago, set for medical in next 24h.”

Considering Hojlund’s abject performances last season, and the arrival of Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig having relegated the Dane to the stands, this constitutes a brilliant deal from United’s perspective.

They receive a reasonable loan fee and are free of Hojlund’s wage packet for the year before the potential of a £38m transfer next summer – which is dependent on conditions Napoli are very likely to achieve.

United shelved out £72m to sign Hojlund two years ago from Atalanta. This meant that his remaining book value was in the region of £43m this summer, meaning a sale below this figure would have incurred a negative hit from a PSR perspective.

Next summer, the book value will drop to around £29m after another year of amortisation, meaning the fee agreed with Napoli will represent a considerable boost to the club’s finances.

It is also a good move for Hojlund.

He returns to a country he is comfortable in and a league where he first demonstrated the potential which led United to target him in the first place. He is joining a title-winning side who will play in the Champions League this season and he will be playing for a manager who is famed for getting the best out of big, physical number nines.

As pieces of business go, this is as close to a win win as you can get for all parties involved.

Featured image Justin Setterfield via Getty Images

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