Rasmus Hojlund sends Christian Eriksen 'classy' message after 'unhappy' Manchester United admission

Rasmus Hojlund admits he has a great deal of sympathy for Christian Eriksen after he admitted he was 'unhappy' with situation at Manchester United.

The Danish midfielder has only played 116 minutes of football across all competitions so far this calendar year, with much of his time spent watching on from the bench.

Eriksen, 32, was a key part of Erik ten Hag's side last season but his form fell off following injury and he has fallen behind teenage sensation Kobbie Mainoo in the pecking order. He has started just nine of 28 matches in the Premier League this season, but did feature from the bench in their dramatic 4-3 comeback win over Liverpool in the FA Cup quarter-finals last weekend.

Hojlund has great sympathy for his teammate at both club and international level but admits it is down to Ten Hag to make the tough selection decisions. "I myself have sat on the bench for Copenhagen, so I know what that means," Hojlund told TV2.  "But he holds his head high and he is a class player. There is absolutely no doubt about that. 

"There is no concern at all from me about it. Of course, you want to play football. And I’m sure he does too. [But] he trains well and is still very positive and very helpful, so it’s not a big deal. He is a real professional.

"It was good he got some minutes against Liverpool. I think he did really well when he came on. He is a good player, so you would like to see him on the field, but we have many good players. So it must be the coach’s decision whether he plays or not."

Speaking to Danish outlet Tipsbladet earlier in the week, Eriksen admitted that it had been difficult to see his playing time diminish so much during his second season at the club. “I’ve said in the past that I’m not happy with not playing, but it’s not something I lose sleep over," he said.

"The team performs and then I have to respect the role you have on the side. For me, it’s been working hard and focusing on being fresh for every game, and I am. It’s easier now to accept my role than it was before.”