Alan Shearer praises Rasmus Hojlund for ‘toiling away’ while playing in a ‘frustrating team’ after the forward netted Man United’s fourth goal in win over Newport

Alan Shearer has praised Rasmus Hojlund for his persistence during Manchester United‘s FA Cup win over Newport.

Hojlund scored his side’s final goal of their 4-2 win in Wales on Sunday night, having struggled to see much of the ball throughout, playing up front on his own.

The forward scored what was a scrappy goal, chasing a ball into the box played by Alejandro Garnacho towards Omari Forson, which was blocked by a Newport defender.

Hojlund poked in and was mobbed by his team-mates as he displayed a sense of relief on his face to have netted for the eighth time this season.

Speaking on BBC after the game, Premier League all-time leading goal scorer Shearer admitted his admiration for the forward’s efforts in what was a difficult fixture for United. 

The forward poked in his side’s final goal late on as they survived a score to beat their League Two opponents 4-2

Shearer (centre) said Hojlund ‘lead the line really well’ despite seeing little of the ball in game

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‘I thought he toiled away really well up front on his own,’ Shearer said on BBC punditry. ‘He led the line really well.

‘I thought he deserved his goal because of that. He’s alive, and he sticks it away really well. As I said, I thought he deserved it because of everything that he did, his effort and everything else. He never stopped all afternoon.

‘It’s frustrating at times, playing in that team, because I’m not quite sure when the ball is coming in. But you’ve got to keep going, and he did that and he got his goal. He deserved it.’

United will face either Bristol City or Nottingham Forest in the fifth round of the competition after surviving a scare to secure victory at Rodney Parade.

Hojlund was mobbed by his team-mates after scoring and receiving reward for his hard work in the match

It looked as though they would be in for a comfortable afternoon when Bruno Fernandes and Kobbie Mainoo put them 2-0 up within the first 15 minutes, but Newport hit back and were level just after half time

Antony scored his first goal of the season to make it 3-2 and break Newport hearts on 68 minutes, however, and Hojlund secured the victory deep into stoppage time.