Rasmus Hojlund thanked his team-mate Kevin De Bruyne after the 34-year-old Belgian provided assists for both of his goals as Napoli beat Sporting CP on Wednesday. The Danish striker scored a match-winning brace in the 2-1 victory in the Champions League, their first in the competition this season having lost 2-0 to Manchester City two weeks ago.

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  Hojlund brace sinks Sporting CP

  Hojlund put an end to a run of three goalless games on Wednesday evening, as his goals in the 36th and 79th minute of the game helped Napoli beat Sporting CP 2-1 on the second matchday of the league phase of the Champions League. It was an important brace for the 22-year-old forward, who hadn't found the back of the net since scoring on his Napoli debut three weeks ago.

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• Hojlund's double De Bruyne delight

  "It was a fantastic evening and I thank my teammates for that," Hojlund told while reflecting on the win. "We've earned our first points in the Champions League, but the road is long and we need to keep going. Later, we'll also face my brother Oscar's Eintracht Frankfurt and I can't wait." 

  Regarding the double assist provided by De Bruyne, he said:"I thanked him. Kevin is a legend of this sport and when he has the ball I know that with his quality he will always put it to me in the best possible way."

  He later wrote on Instagram: "'Hojlund scores twice in the Champions League after two assists from Kevin De Bruyne' was not on my 2025 bingo card."

• De Bruyne joins elite company

  De Bruyne became only the sixth player in Champions League history to bag two assists on five or more occasions. In the process, he joined the elite company of Angel Di Maria, Ryan Giggs, David Beckham, Lionel Mess, and Zinedine Zidane to achieve the feat.

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  Genoa challenge awaits Napoli

  Having started their Serie A title defence with four consecutive wins, the Partenopei's run was halted last weekend thanks to a 2-1 defeat against AC Milan. They will aim to bounce back from the loss when they welcome 19th-placed Genoa on Sunday.