Manchester United are closing in on the signing of RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko amid rival interest from Newcastle United.
Manchester United appear to have taken a leaf out of Sir Alex Ferguson’s book by focusing on signing proven Premier League quality.
Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo have joined United this summer, arriving from Wolverhampton Wanderers and Brentford respectively.
United love to shop abroad as well, though, and another deal is now moving towards completion.
United are closing in on signing Benjamin Sesko, with a deal for the RB Leipzig striker advancing rapidly.
Sesko looks set to become the latest addition from German football, so let’s take a look at every first-team player Manchester United have signed from the Bundesliga over the years…
Owen Hargreaves
United snapped up Owen Hargreaves from Bayern Munich in 2007, a year later than Sir Alex Ferguson initially wanted.
Hargreaves impressed for England at the 2006 World Cup, but United were forced to wait for his arrival.
Ferguson believed Hargreaves would replace Roy Keane, and a £17million deal was struck for the midfielder.
Hargreaves struggled with injuries throughout his United career, managing just 27 Premier League appearances before being let go in 2011.
Shinji Kagawa
United waited five years for the next Bundesliga arrival, as playmaker Shinji Kagawa joined from Borussia Dortmund.
The Japanese playmaker had excelled under Jurgen Klopp at Dortmund, racking up 29 goals in 17 games from midfield.
Kagawa arrived in the same summer as Robin van Persie, with Ferguson hoping to see both players make a big impact at Old Trafford.
Van Persie was a title-winning hero, but Kagawa failed to really settle at United and managed just six goals in 57 games before heading back to Dortmund.
Kagawa never quite lived up to expectations at United, but he is still playing at the age of 36, turning out for Cerezo Osaka in his native Japan.
Bastian Schweinsteiger
Louis van Gaal snapped up Bastian Schweinsteiger in the summer of 2015, reuniting with the midfielder having previously worked together at Bayern.
The German had been one of Europe’s top midfielders during his time with Bayern, racking up 500 appearances before heading to Old Trafford.
Schweinsteiger’s move just never worked out, managing just 18 Premier League appearances as injuries and lack of form hampered him.
Jose Mourinho exiled Schweinsteiger after his appointment in 2016, paving the way for a move to Major League Soccer side Chicago Fire as his dismal time at United came to an end.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan
Just two years after signing Schweinsteiger, United went back to the Bundesliga market with a move to sign Henrikh Mkhitaryan from Borussia Dortmund.
Mkhitaryan was ‘crazy good’ at Dortmund, notching 41 goals and 49 assists in 140 appearances for the Bundesliga side.
United swooped in for the Armenian, and we saw moments of real quality from Mkhitaryan, though Mourinho never seemed fully convinced.
Sure enough, just 18 months after joining United, Mkhitaryan was offloaded to Arsenal in an ill-fated swap deal for Alexis Sanchez.
Mkhitaryan has reinvented himself as a fantastic central midfield player and is still going strong at 36, even helping Inter reach the Champions League final earlier this year.
Jadon Sancho
If United’s business in the German market is underwhelming to this point, then it only gets worse with the signing of Jadon Sancho.
United signed Sancho from Borussia Dortmund in 2021, bringing an end to a lengthy pursuit.
Sancho was one of the hottest English players on the market and dazzled for Dortmund with 50 goals and 64 assists to his name.
United appeared to land a major coup, but Sancho has never been able to hit those heights at Old Trafford.
Sancho has managed just 12 goals and six assists in a United shirt and found himself out of Erik ten Hag’s plans.
Sancho’s loan spell with Chelsea wasn’t turned permanent, and Ruben Amorim has no plans to reintegrate the 25-year-old, meaning the wide man will go down as a rather expensive mistake.
Marcel Sabitzer
January 2023 saw United strike a deal for Marcel Sabitzer, luring the Austrian midfielder to Old Trafford in a loan move from Bayern Munich.
Sabitzer actually impressed in his brief spell with United, notching three goals in 18 appearances.
The former RB Leipzig man came off the bench to help United win the Carabao Cup final against Newcastle United in 2023, but didn’t do quite enough to earn a permanent move.
Sabitzer instead joined Borussia Dortmund, where he reached the Champions League final against Real Madrid in 2024.
Matthijs de Ligt
Erik ten Hag completed a double swoop on Bayern Munich last summer, with central defender Matthijs de Ligt one of his additions.
Ten Hag and De Ligt worked together at Ajax and reunited in an attempt to bolster United’s back line.
De Ligt has been through ups and downs throughout his career, failing to really build on the potential he showed with Ajax.
Stints with Juventus and Bayern didn’t quite go to plan, but De Ligt performed well last season and will hopefully be a key player for years to come.
Noussair Mazraoui
De Ligt joined United alongside Noussair Mazraoui, having played together at Ajax under Ten Hag.
Mazraoui joined as a full-back, capable of playing on either side of the United back four.
Ruben Amorim’s appointment changed Mazraoui’s role, with the Moroccan now viewed as a centre-back in a three-man defence.
Mazraoui is now part of United’s leadership group, suggesting that he has a huge role to play under Amorim moving forward.
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