£20m wonderkid striker admits snubbing Manchester United

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RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko has admitted snubbing a move to Manchester United in favour of moving to Germany.

United simply had to go into the market for a new striker this summer in order to bolster Erik ten Hag’s attacking options.

There were two routes for United; splash out for a proven goalscorer like Harry Kane or invest in somebody for the future.

United took the second option, snapping up Rasmus Hojlund in a big-money move from Atalanta.

The early signs are positive with Hojlund but United did consider other options – and one has opened up on the interest.

Benjamin Sesko was heavily linked with Manchester United

United actually wanted to sign Benjamin Sesko from Red Bull Salzburg back in August 2022.

Sky Sports reported that United had held talks over a deal to bring Sesko to Old Trafford but there was a major gap in the valuations.

United ended up seeing Sesko commit his future to Salzburg’s sister club RB Leipzig just days after that report, with the deal teed up for the summer of 2023.

The rumours didn’t end there though as 90Min suggested in April that United were still scouting Sesko in the hope of tempting Leipzig to sell before he even kicked a ball for them.

Unsurprisingly, Leipzig didn’t really fancy that move and the 20-year-old has now started the season with two goals in just 123 minutes of Bundesliga action.

The 20-year-old looks set to become an absolute superstar in the coming years with United sadly missing out.

Sesko comments on United snub

Sesko has now been asked directly about United’s interest during an interview with Transfermarkt.

The Leipzig star admitted that he was not really interested in the idea of joining United or AC Milan, believing that Leipzig was the better option.

Sesko highlighted that the transition from Salzburg to Leipzig – two clubs strongly linked in terms of their approach to football – was better for him at this stage in his career.

“The thing is, I was not really into that kind of conversation,” said Sesko. “But I think, yeah, I think it was better just to come here.”

“It was really important for me to go to a place that was playing a similar style of football. I already knew what to do and didn’t have to go through an entire learning process again,” he added.

United may well keep tabs on Sesko moving forward but you can almost guarantee that Leipzig will want a hefty profit on the €24million (£20million) they paid for him if he develops as expected.