Kevin De Bruyne claimed that his current Napoli teammate Rasmus Højlund and Erling Haaland, who thrived alongside the Belgian playmaker at Manchester City, are “very similar.”
Højlund was actively forced out of Manchester United over the summer despite being open to remain at Old Trafford and fight for a starting spot. Napoli took advantage of United’s haste, agreeing a loan deal with a conditional obligation to buy the 22-year-old Dane for €44 million (£38.3 million, $51.6 million) on Deadline Day. It has proven to be a promising investment.
There was less than 15 minutes on the clock by the time Højlund scored for Napoli on his Serie A debut—for comparison, it took him 1,027 minutes to break his duck for Manchester United in the Premier League.
There have been more similarities to his frustrating time at Old Trafford over the subsequent weeks, but Højlund nabbed a well-taken brace during Napoli’s 2–1 Champions League victory over Sporting CP on Wednesday.
Former Man United players and former Manchester City players linking up in the Champions League.
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De Bruyne set up both goals, whipping in a cross for a thumping header in the 79th minute after setting Højlund away on a rapid counterattack in the first half. “I was trying to get into that space for the first goal and was waiting for the right moment to pass it to Rasmus, luckily he did the rest,” the former Manchester City midfielder explained. “I think Rasmus is growing a lot and is very similar to Haaland.”
When pushed on this surprising claim, De Bruyne explained: “I think they are very similar because they both like to attack the depth. Maybe Højlund comes to play the ball towards us more, but I think he needs to attack the space a lot because he can score and give us a big hand.”
“Rasmus has a lot of quality and as a striker when you go forward you need that smell of goals—it’s really important for him and the team,” De Bruyne beamed.
Højlund was practically delirious with joy postgame. On social media, the excitable match-winner captioned a post: “‘Højlund scores twice in the Champions League after two assists from Kevin de Bruyne’ was not on my 2025 bingo card.”
How Rasmus Hojlund Compares to Erling Haaland
De Bruyne’s assessment of Højlund and Haaland is a question of style rather than success. The respective goal records of the two towering Scandinavians renders any comparison in output almost pointless; Højlund finished his Manchester United career with 26 goals, Haaland has amassed the same tally for City just in the calendar year of 2025.
Napoli’s new creative fulcrum isn’t the only player to spot the shared traits of Haaland and Højlund. The Dane’s former Atalanta manager Gian Piero Gasperini made the comparison before he joined United, accelerating a hype train which ultimately earned the Serie A side a €75 million transfer fee.
“He has very similar characteristics to Haaland,” Gasperini gushed. “He is so quick, he’s under 11 seconds over 100m and that’s not even trying very hard. Considering his height, he has a low centre of gravity. I am convinced he’ll have a great career, he just gets stronger every day.” With De Bruyne alongside him, he has a better chance of living up to those lofty ambitions.
Stats correct as of Oct. 2, 2025.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Kevin De Bruyne Makes Wild Rasmus Hojlund, Erling Haaland Comparison.
