Benjamin Sesko forces Manchester United to rip up transfer plans

Manchester United centre-forward Benjamin Sesko has reportedly forced the club to abandon their transfer plan this summer after impressing executives behind the scenes.

Slow Start to Life in Manchester

Signed from RB Leipzig for £74 million in the summer, Sesko arrived at Old Trafford with the weight of the world on his young shoulders.

The Slovenia international was arriving at a club which had already laid waste to the potential of another 22-year-old striker in Rasmus Hojlund, with the Dane making room up front by joining Napoli on a season-long loan.

Sesko struggled in the first half of the campaign as he was confronted by a much tougher landscape to navigate in English football compared to the Bundesliga, where high lines afford attackers a mountain of space to operate in. This had led INEOS to consider signing a more experienced partner this summer, given Joshua Zirkzee’s own issues since arriving in the Premier League.

However, the 6’5 frontman has exploded into life over the past month, following the dismissal of Ruben Amorim as head coach, with Darren Fletcher taking charge on an interim basis before Michael Carrick was appointed caretaker until the end of the season.

In Fletcher’s first game at the helm, Sesko scored a superb brace at Turf Moor as United laboured to a 2-2 draw with Burnley, showcasing the full spectrum of his skillset.

The Slovenian was then dropped to the bench for Carrick’s first three games – a run which has transformed the mood at the Theatre of Dreams with successive wins over Manchester City, Arsenal and Fulham to lift the team up to fourth – in favour of Bryan Mbeumo as a false nine.

But, in a twist which brought a smile to every United fan’s face, it was Sesko who emerged from the bench in last weekend’s victory over Fulham to secure all three points, converting a brilliant finish on the half-turn to put United 3-2 up in injury time. He has even praised Carrick for the 44-year-old coach’s influence on the team, rather than being put off by being benched.

However, it is the 22-year-old’s impressive work off the pitch which has led INEOS to shelve plans to sign another striker, rather than his decisive contributions on it.

Behind the Scenes

The i Paper reveals Sesko’s “conduct behind the scenes” at Carrington, United’s training ground, has “started to win over” the club’s hierarchy.

The Slovenian is considered “one of the hardest workers” in the squad, with an almost fanatic approach to preparation and recovery for matches and training. It is this work ethic which is understood to have made recruitment director Christopher Vivell so certain he would prove a success in Manchester.

The i Paper contends Sesko has huge “determination to not become the latest in a long line of big-money flops” for the Red Devils – an approach which has “not gone unnoticed” by INEOS.

This dedication off the pitch, and his burgeoning threat on it, has convinced the club’s rulers “to remain focused solely on the midfield rebuild” this summer, shelving plans to bring in a new number nine.

The fact that Mbeumo has proven such a hit up front, in addition to Matheus Cunha’s ability to play through the middle, will also have played a huge part in this change in tack as well.

Featured image Carl Recine via Getty Images

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