Manchester United Reject Barcelona’s Interest in Sesko
Barcelona’s search for Robert Lewandowski’s successor has taken them to Old Trafford. Manchester United’s response has been blunt: Benjamin Sesko is not for sale.
Reports in Spain placed the 23-year-old Slovenian on a Barcelona shortlist drawn up as the club prepares for life after Lewandowski, who is set to leave the Nou Camp after four years. Marca listed Sesko among the options under consideration, with Borussia Dortmund forward Serhou Guirassy also namechecked as a possible target.
The Catalan club have been pushing hard for Julian Alvarez, currently at Atletico Madrid, but talks have yet to produce an agreement for the Argentine. As that move stalls, Barcelona’s recruitment team has widened the net and Sesko’s name has inevitably surfaced, his profile and age ticking several boxes for a side trying to refresh its attack.
There has even been a suggestion that Atletico themselves could turn to Sesko if they do end up losing Alvarez, creating a neat transfer triangle on paper.
United are having none of it.
The club have given those reports short shrift and made it clear they have no intention of cashing in on Sesko after just one season in Manchester. Signed from RB Leipzig for £73 million last summer, he endured a slow bedding-in period before erupting into form in the second half of the campaign.
By the end of his debut season, Sesko had 12 goals in 32 appearances in all competitions, including 11 in the Premier League. Those league strikes came at a rate of one every 149 minutes – an output that underlines why United see him as central to their plans rather than a tradeable asset.
Inside the club, there is a sense of quiet satisfaction at how quickly he has adapted. United view Sesko as their long-term No. 9, a status only strengthened after Rasmus Hojlund completed a permanent move to Napoli for £38 million. One young centre-forward has gone. The other, they believe, is ready to grow into the role.
Sesko featured in all but one of the 31 Premier League matches for which he was available, but those minutes were not handed to him on a plate. He started just 17 league games and only six of Michael Carrick’s 17 matches in charge after the former midfielder replaced Ruben Amorim in January.
That limited starting role did not stunt his progress. It sharpened it.
Carrick quickly built a strong rapport with Sesko, as did first-team coach Travis Binnion. The striker spent extra time on the training ground, working individually to refine his movement, hold-up play and finishing. The work told. Seven of his 12 goals came after Carrick’s appointment, a surge that turned a promising first season into a convincing audition for the No. 9 shirt on a permanent basis.
So when Barcelona and Atletico begin to circle, United’s stance is rooted in more than stubbornness. They believe they have already found their future centre-forward and are not about to hand him over just as he begins to catch fire.
Next season, Sesko is expected to step out of the rotation role and into something far more central. The interest from Spain only underlines how quickly his stock has risen. The real question now is not where he will go, but how far he can take United from the heart of their attack.
