Manchester United’s opening day defeat at the hands of Brighton once again highlighted the need to strengthen in key areas of the pitch.
Erik ten Hag was forced to start Christian Eriksen as the false nine due to Anthony Martial‘s injury and Cristiano Ronaldo not being fit enough to start.
The need to sign an attacker has been apparent since Ronaldo made it known to the club that he wants a move to a Champions League club.
The only deal RB Salzburg would accept for Benjamin Sesko would be to sell but keep him on loan for one more season. Sesko and his agent will meet this week to make a decision. [@FabrizioRomano, United Stand YT] #mufc
— The United Stand (@UnitedStandMUFC) August 8, 2022
But the club have dithered and stumbled as they tried to find the best alternative. Antony was deemed too expensive due to Ajax’s valuation and now the focus has shifted to young RB Salzburg striker Benjamin Sesko.
The last week has seen a flurry of contrasting reports with regards to United’s chase of the Slovenian. Sky Sport Austria had revealed that the 19-year-old wants to remain at the Austrian club for one more season before making a move.
But Slovenian publication Sportklub have debunked those claims, stating that the report has come from the club’s end. Salzburg want to keep hold of the prodigious talent for one more year as they feel they can extract a higher fee next summer.
In-demand Sesko yet to decide
The same publication have exclusively revealed that the player has held meetings with both family members as well as agent Elvis Bašanović. And there is high chance that the Slovenian international might take up one of the offers on the table.
So far, United, Chelsea, PSG, Real Madrid and RB Leipzig have come up with the most enticing offers. Once personal terms have been agreed, the club can then proceed to negotiating a fee with the Austrian side.
But the player agreeing on a deal does not necessarily mean that he will depart Salzburg this window. The Austrian Bundesliga club would like to keep hold of Sesko for this season and that means a one-year loan deal might be in the offing.
The price is expected to remain around €50 million but it might go even higher. And a decision is expected within the next few days.
United are reportedly in talks with Marko Arnautović but fans and pundits remain divided over the signing. Sesko would represent a shift in United’s transfer policy which has seen the club complete deals for strikers well over 30.
Despite the high price being quoted by Salzburg, Sesko would represent the ideal Ten Hag signing. He is young, hungry and highly talented. He already has two goals and an assist this season and would greatly improve a severely weakened United attack.
