Rasmus Hojlund spoke of his intentions to achieve Champions League qualification with Atlanta as quickly as possible after his emphatic week away with Denmark during the recent international break.
The 20-year-old scored a hat-trick on his first start for Denmark against Finland last Thursday before backing up his player of the match performance with a brace in the 3-2 loss to Kazakhstan on Sunday.
Arriving back in Bergamo this week, Hojlund was not selected to start in the 3-1 win at Cremonese on Saturday by Gian Piero Gasperini, who had all of his strikers fit and available.
Speaking to DAZN after the game, Hojlund said: “I’m delighted, it’s been a fantastic week, first with the goals for the national team, and then today’s victory. I’m very happy that the three substitute strikers have done so well.”
Hojlund was told to keep his feet on the ground by Gasperini when he spoke after the victory at the Stadio Giovanni Zini, with his boss saying he still has a long way to go before he reaches the top of his game.
Atalanta’s in-form centre-forward came off the bench after an hour of play on Saturday afternoon, although wasn’t able to continue his scoring streak on this occasion.
Still, Hojlund remains confident that Atalanta will be able to qualify for the Champions League next season, despite currently sitting fifth in the Serie A Table.
He told DAZN: “We still have to work to move up in the standings and try to win games. I hope to be able to reach the Champions League as soon as possible. There are still many games left, we’ll see where we end up at the end of the season.”