Manchester United legend Rio Ferdinand has told Benjamin Sesko that he needs to “hit the ground running” once he seals his £74m move from RB Leipzig.
Ferdinand has previously raised doubts about signing the 22-year-old, as he was hoping for a more experienced player to lead the line. However, reacting after the Red Devils agreed a fee for Sesko, the TNT Sports pundit was more optimistic, but he still feels that the striker won’t get much time to prove his credentials:
“Wow. Huge money, £70m being spent. Listen, he’s a young guy, been at Leipzig, playing, scoring goals. Last season, he played 45 games and scored 21 goals, six assists, so the guy knows where the back of the net is. That’s almost one goal every two games. Yes, it’s a different league, it’s the Bundesliga, but he does play international football as well, he scores in international football, and he knows where the net is.”
“A lot of people are going to go and suggest, ‘Oh, has he got the experience?’, and I was one of those guys in that camp going, ‘Do you know what? Where is the player that can actually show the young, inexperienced strikers that we have at the club how to do things? In times of need, who do they look to? He’s going to have to step up and be that guy. Can he do it? Yes, he can do it; he’s got huge potential. But one of the things, as we’ve seen in recent years, our strikers, when they come in the door here, you’re not afforded a lot of time, there ain’t a great amount of patience, and you’ve got to hit the ground running.”
Sesko will need to learn from what happened with Hojlund
There was much fanfare when the Red Devils sealed the signature of Rasmus Hojlund for a similar transfer fee a couple of years ago.
However, Sesko’s arrival at Old Trafford is expected to put the final nail in the coffin of the Danish international, who is expected to be shipped out if the club receive a fee in the region of £30m.
As Ferdinand mentions, it is hoped that United’s newest recruit will fare better than Hojlund has.
What will be Man United’s next move?
Ruben Amorim’s side will need to raise funds from player sales. Talks are expected to ramp up with Chelsea, who are keen to secure the services of Alejandro Garnacho.
Suitors will also have to be found for Hojlund, as well as Jadon Sancho, Antony and Tyrell Malacia before the transfer window closes.
Read more about the Manchester United First Team Squad for 2025/26 here
David Tully
David has worked as a football reporter for the last fifteen years. Having started as an intern at Snack Media, he then went on to become a freelancer, working on various different sites. At the start of 2023, he took up his current role as content writer for National World’s Football News Network.
