Not often does a signing make so much sense that not only is the player’s fit seamless, but what he does for his teammates is crystal clear, too.
That is the case with Benjamin Sesko, who arrives at Man Utd in a deal worth an initial £66m after a chase that spanned nearly seven years across various clubs.
Sesko has been described as “special” by Christopher Vivell before, and even though he is just 22, he comes to Old Trafford with two seasons of genuine top-five league experience.
While Sesko’s physicality and pace make him the ideal Amorim striker, he also has a unique skill set that makes him the perfect partner for United’s new duo behind him.
Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo’s polar opposite preferences
United have overhauled their whole attack and did it in a way beyond Man Utd fans‘ most optimistic projections.
Cunha and Mbeumo bring proven Premier League pedigree and 35 goals from last season, while Sesko brings tantalising potential if he hits the mark.
The thing that should excite fans the most, however, is not even his goals or the potential goals he could score at Old Trafford.
It is that he has a unique skill set that can best be described as the “best of both worlds”, and that will come as music to the ears of Mbeumo and Cunha.
That is because, for all the talk about Cunha and Mbeumo combining, their choice of an ideal striker partner couldn’t be more different.
Cunha played his best football last season with Jorgen Strand Larsen, the burly striker who drops deep and links up the play before finding runners beyond him.
Cunha was regularly one of those runners, taking advantage of Larsen dragging a centre-back with him and then wreaking havoc when he received balls closer to the box.
In stark contrast, Mbeumo did his best work last season when he played with Yoane Wissa. After years of playing with Ivan Toney or Ollie Watkins, Mbeumo had a strike partner who ran the channels, played on the shoulder of the last man, and stretched defences.
Mbeumo’s best football came when he picked up the ball in the pockets of space emptied by Wissa, stretching the defence.
The winger picked up the ball in those pockets and drove forward, either finishing with his left foot after coming in from the right flank, or making slide-rule passes to teammates in space.
Thus, Cunha and Mbeumo both like a striker to play off of, but what they want the striker to do is completely different.
It’s exciting, then, that United are set to announce the signing of Sesko, because he can do both.
Benjamin Sesko unlocks the best of Mbeumo and Cunha
Strikers like to either drop deep and dictate play, or run in behind and stretch defences. Sesko, on the other hand, excels at doing both.
His physique and height allow him to get the balls to stick to him, which he uses to maximum effect by dropping deep and linking up the play.
At the same time, he is deceptively rapid, especially over long distances when he is allowed to build up some steam, which makes him an ideal candidate to attack space and stretch defences.
Not only can he mould his game as per the player he is linking up with, but his aerial threat also makes him a dream for the wing-backs when they cross.
United added proven quality to the forward line with Mbeumo and Cunha, but they both needed the help of a specific type of striker last season to flourish.
With Sesko, they have effectively signed two strikers in one. One for Mbeumo, another for Cunha.
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