Manchester United were in training yesterday as Ruben Amorim put his team through their paces ahead of this weekend’s trip to Brentford – and an inside report as revealed how the squad reacted to Benjamin Sesko’s performance at Carrington.
The Slovenian Striker
Sesko arrived at Old Trafford from RB Leipzig this summer in a deal worth a potential £74 million – a huge outlay on a player with only 13 goals in the Bundesliga last season.
But it’s a price which reflects the enormous potential the 6’5 frontman possesses, demonstrated by the long
line of suitors who expressed interest in the Slovenian international, including Arsenal, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Barcelona.
But at just 22 years of age, the pressure on a striker still so young to lead the line for one of the world’s biggest clubs is considerable – and the decline of Rasmus Hojlund over the past twelve months offers a stark warning for United to a mistake which must not be repeated.
Sesko has had a quiet start to life at Old Trafford. He is yet to get off the mark for his new team, though his brilliant flick-on against Chelsea led to Robert Sanchez’s red card and was as good as a goal in many ways as United secured a crucial three points last weekend.
Amorim’s men face Brentford at the Gtech Commmunity Stadium in the early kick off on Saturday.
It may be the first opportunity the Portuguese coach gets to field all three of his new attacking trident, with fellow new signings Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo flanking either side of Sesko in the front line.
And based on his teammates reaction to Sesko’s predatory prowess in training this week, the Slovenian may not have to wait much longer to register his first goal for the Red Devils.
“Yes, Ben”
The club’s resident reporter, Adam Marshall, was at Carrington yesterday to offer fans the “inside story” on United’s preparations under Amorim.
“After a session in the gym, the group were in particularly high spirits on Tuesday, perhaps to be expected after a huge three points were secured in the 2-1 win over Chelsea, and there were plenty of smiles and laughs before the serious business got under way.
“The players split into groups to play games of rondos and head tennis to loosen up and the mood remained very upbeat and positive throughout. When it came to the tactical drills, there was a chance to indulge in some ballwork and, for me, to get a first glimpse of Senne Lammens, as our latest signing made one outstanding save from Joshua Zirkzee at close range.
“To be fair, each of the four goalkeepers (Altay Bayindir, Tom Heaton and Dermot Mee also took part) made top stops at various points but it was not hard to be drawn to the slick interplay from the outfielders.”
But Marhsall made specific note of Sesko looking “very sharp” in front of goal, drawing “ripples of applause” from teammates who marvelled at his finishing.
“Benjamin Sesko looked very sharp in front of goal, displaying a variety of finishes, including an emphatic penalty he won during the practice game. It was telling how much encouragement there was in general, but the Slovenia striker’s clinical marksmanship drew appreciative ripples of applause and shouts of ‘yes, Ben’ from his colleagues.”
Speaking last week, Harry Maguire was quick to stress Sesko’s qualities in front of goal, describing his finishing as “excellent” and predicting the 22-year-old will score a “lot of goals” for the club.
As Marshall is a journalist employed by the club and Maguire is a teammate and leader in the United dressing room, they are not the most objective sources, and so these words must be viewed through those lens.
But Sesko’s performance against Chelsea was his sharpest yet. And if not for Casemiro’s red card, it feels likely the Slovenian would have got off the mark against the Blues in the second half, as he was instead withdrawn at the half-time interval.
Sesko will be undoubtedly be raring to make up for this missed opportunity against Brentford on Saturday.
Featured image Alex Livesey via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
