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Manchester United travelled to South London to face Crystal Palace on Monday night and returned with a negative-three-goal differential as well as plenty of question marks on Erik ten Hag’s project.
Man United’s defence and midfield were nothing short of embarrassing, seemingly doing little to stop Palace’s attackers from driving toward their goal and rattling the net four times.
Still, do not let their performance take the spotlight away from United’s toothless frontline, which appeared clueless in the absence of Bruno Fernandes.
At this point, everyone agrees that a new goal-scorer needs to be high on INEOS’ summer shopping list.
However, a report from Germany suggests United may struggle to get their long-term attacking target Benjamin Sesko, owing to the value of his release clause rising ahead of the summer transfer window.
In April, the Peoples Person relayed a report claiming RB Leipzig would be open to facilitating the 20-year-old striker’s exit. It read:
“The €50m (£42m) release clause in Sesko’s current contract may not need to be activated in order for him to leave, with Leipzig open-minded about the structure of any deal providing that ballpark valuation is met.”
According to Sky Sport Germany journalist Philipp Hinze, the Slovenian’s price tag could change, but in the opposite direction to what United or his other suitors would prefer.
The journalist states that due to Sesko’s impressive performance in the second half of the campaign, his release clause has risen to €65m. The young talent has scored five goals in his last five Bundesliga appearances.
It is thought that his release clause is dependent on many factors, including game time, goals, and assists. Hinze claims that “in the maximum case, the sum can rise to €70m-€75m.”
To make matters worse, AC Milan have also joined the race for his signature, as they look to replace Olivier Giroud.
According to Calciomercato, apart from Sesko, the Italian giants are also monitoring Bologna talisman Joshua Zirkzee, another United transfer target.
