Vieri claims Hojlund is ‘one of the five best strikers in the world’

Christian Vieri has launched a bold claim that Napoli centre-forward Rasmus Hojlund is potentially among the top five strikers in the world, but believes that Antonio Conte still has a big decision to make when Romelu Lukaku returns to full fitness. 

Hojlund has had a productive season thus far following his move from Manchester United at the end of the summer transfer window He has seven goals and three assists to his name so far this campaign, has been a regular in the team that is expected to battle for the Serie A title until the very end, and was also a key player in Napoli’s victorious Supercoppa Italiana campaign in December.

The Dane’s has drawn the attention of Vieri, who has told La Gazzetta dello Sport that Hojlund is ‘potentially one of the five best strikers in the world’. 

Speaking in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Vieri explained that he still feels Napoli are among the favourites to win the Serie A table this season. They sit in third place heading into the 17th round of league fixtures. 

“It’s still Napoli,” Vieri said when asked who he thinks will win the 2025-26 league title. 

“Conte is tough and strong and wants that second Scudetto. They proved to be a great team in Riyadh: It ended 2-0, but it could have been four or five. It was like a warning for the league.” 

Vieri was asked about the turnaround in Napoli form that Conte has overseen this season. 

“Antonio didn’t have to ‘recover’, he never really lost it,” he said.  

“He always has control of everything, even in the tough moments. Napoli have lost games, some they lost badly, but that’s normal, especially if you’re in the Champions League. 

“There was no need for him to raise his voice in the tough moments, there was no point in going on TV to complain. Conte is a champion in the dugout and if there are problems, he simply needs to solve them. And so he has done. He’s been great, he’s corrected the things that were wrong and now has another trophy.” 

Vieri was also full of praise for David Neres, who scored three goals in two matches during the Supercoppa Italiana: “Conte has seen that he’s no longer the same player from last season. He’s more solid, he’s better at finding the breakthrough in games. He’s fast, quick, has a brilliant touch. People love these sorts of players, they make everyone have fun.” 

And then, when asked whether Conte should keep Hojlund in his starting XI or replace him with Romelu Lukaku when the Belgian is back to full fitness, Vieri said: “I consider Hojlund as potentially one of the five best strikers in the world. He can score goals, but he knows how to attack deep and wear down defences. 

“He has a strong left foot and is great with his head and his physicality. In short, he has everything. It’s not easy to take his place away from him, but it has to be said that Lukaku knows how to make the rest of his teammates play well as well. They need both, bud deciding who plays is up to Conte alone: A great problem to have to solve.”