Forget Nicolas Jackson: Man United's dream £60m striker alternative is completely obvious
The £60m Bundesliga star would complete Ruben Amorim’s attack
Viktor Gyokeres to Arsenal, Hugo Ekitike to Liverpool, Joao Pedro and Liam Delap to Chelsea, Jonathan David to Juventus, Jhon Duran to Fenerbahce, Alexander Isak staying at Newcastle and Victor Osimhen making Galatasaray his permanent home. One by one, the dancers are pairing off on the summer transfer Striker’s Ball but two prize patricians are still without a match - Benjamin Sesko and Manchester United.
The Glazers, Sir Jim Ratcliffe and Ruben Amorim (among many, many others) have sorely tested Manchester United fans’ patience over the last season and beyond, yet going ahead with signing Nicolas Jackson as their new star striker may well be the final straw.
Red carded twice since the start of May - a strike rate that must be one of the most clinical in the world right now - Jackson has only hit the net on as many occasions for Chelsea following that first early bath and was one of the worst finishers in the Premier League last season.
Out of 574 qualifying players, Jackson was 562nd in goals minus expected goals at -2.3 over the campaign, equivalent to an average striker missing an open goal from a yard out every 10 games or a penalty every eight. Comfortably behind both hopeless Rasmus Hojlund (-1.3) and Joshua Zirkzee (-1.8), signing the Senegalese international for at least £50 million (if not as much as £100m) would do little to reassure Manchester United fans that they’ll be a serious club next season.
But with Arsenal seemingly locking in on Amorim’s number one target Gyokeres after previously courting Sesko, the Slovenian could be the answer to the Red Devils’ prayers for €70 million (£60m) and at least complete a revamped attack.
Benjamin Sesko could complete Ruben Amorim’s attacking overhaul
Manchester United’s attacking trio in the 2024/25 Europa League final was comprised of Amad Diallo in only his third start following a serious ankle injury, Hojlund and Mason Mount with Joshua Zirkzee the first impact substitution.
The latter three have averaged £4.4m per goal for the Red Devils representing borderline malfeasance in the transfer market, so it’s no surprise both that they failed to produce a goal in the Toilet Bowl, and that Amorim has targeted his attack so heavily this summer.
The black hole of Carrington has ruined more accomplished players than Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha though on paper they at least seem to have as much hope as anyone to succeed under Amorim, so bringing a striker that can at the very least outperform their xG would be another solid foundation in the rebuild and Sesko is more than just that.
Mbeumo and Cunha are both capable of providing the kind of service to a striker that Sporting gave to Gyokeres as the Swede scored 23 goals in only the three months that Amorim managed the club in 2023/24, and Sesko has the bullish confidence to directly challenge a defence and get into goalscoring positions to receive the ball.
And he knows what to do with it too - his chance conversion is a much healthier +2.3 goals minus xG in the league, meaning if you gave Jackson and Sesko exactly the same set of chances over a season, you’d expect the Slovenian to score almost five more than the Chelsea man.
Manchester United signing Benjamin Sesko wouldn’t be without risk
Sesko could be the next Sporting Gyokeres but five years younger than the Swede, there’s a risk he could more closely resemble Swansea Gyokeres in England. Turning 22 at the end of last season, Sesko scored at a strike rate that will worry potential buyers - 13 goals in 33 Bundesliga games last season for a disappointing RB Leipzig side - and he’s a poor creator.
Aside from his skill at beating defenders with the ball at his feet, Sesko offers precious little in the build-up, and even after signing him this Manchester United side would still be full of holes. Amorim is going into next season with a central midfield of Casemiro and Bruno Fernandes, a technically shaky defence that’s cost £250m to assemble and Andre Onana in goal, while even at the Red Devils’ strongest positions they lack any reliable depth.
However, Sesko hit a goal per 155 minutes in all competitions last season and even in the league was effectively at one in two full games, and still has as much room to sharpen that cutting edge in front of goal as he does to fill out his beanpole 6’5” frame. So signing the Slovenian would at least round out a much-needed overhaul of Amorim’s attack, and show some green shoots of optimism to Manchester United’s mentally battered and bruised fan base.
That is, until Ratcliffe runs out of patience with Amorim and launches another expensive fire and hire within the next 12 months, bringing in a manager with a completely different coaching philosophy.