Paul Scholes says Rasmus Hojlund was ‘lucky to be on the pitch’ after he finally scored his first Premier League goal following 1026 minutes of action.

Hojlund declared himself the ‘happiest man alive right now’ after netting the winner for Manchester United in a 3-2 victory over Aston Villa on Boxing Day.

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Rasmus Hojlund has declared himself the ‘happiest man alive right now’

The £72 million summer transfer of the Denmark international striker at Old Trafford did not result in him scoring his first Premier League goal until after 15 games.

It is thought that United boss Erik ten Hag had been planning to substitute Hojlund in the second half before his 82nd-minute winner, but decided to leave him on and replace Marcus Rashford after the latter player picked up a knock.

‘He does get a little bit of luck with the goal,’ United legend Scholes told Premier League Productions after the match.

‘He’s lucky he’s on the pitch. But as Michael [Owen] said, I think it’s always best when you have not been scoring goals, to not have time about it and act on instinct.

‘He has no time whatsoever [with the goal]. It happens in a flash of a second. The only thing he is thinking about is the far corner, it’s the only place he can score

‘Look, I’m so happy for the lad. It’s been a tough start to his Premier League career. Hopefully he can get up and running and score the goals he deserves to score.’

Scholes also praised Rashford, who bagged an assist, plus midfielder Christian Eriksen following the win over Villa.

‘Tonight they looked a real threat after the first 25 minutes,’ Scholes added. ‘For the last hour, they looked like they could score goals.

‘Marcus Rashford looked a little back to his best. There was a bit more life in him. Alejandro Garnacho got the two goals, Rasmus Hojlund got a goal.

‘You have to remember a lot of these players are young lads and are going to be inconsistent. But now they have to really build on this.

‘Christian Eriksen coming back into the team makes a big difference.’