Manchester United are reportedly monitoring Benjamin Sesko, with the 20-time English champions exploring the possibility of bringing the talented striker to Old Trafford.
According to Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano, the Red Devils are 'well-informed' when it comes to the 19-year-old, although they are not currently in any form of advanced discussions with Red Bull Salzburg over a possible deal.
Newcastle United, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur are also said to be admirers of the teenager, who made his first-team debut for Salzburg in January 2021.
Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at the youngster, with Man United seemingly keen to bring him to the club in the near future, having been closely watching his development.
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Sesko spent time with Radece, Rudar Trbovlje and Krsko during his youth career, reportedly scoring 59 goals in 23 matches for the latter at Under-15s level before making the move to two-time Slovenian champions Domzale.
The youngster then transferred to Salzburg in June 2019, signing a three-year contract with the Austrian giants, but he represented their feeder side FC Liefering between 2019 and 2021.
A successful spell with Liefering saw Sesko find the back of the net on 22 occasions in 44 appearances, including 21 goals in 29 matches in the Austrian Second League in 2020-21.
The forward ultimately made his debut for Salzburg in January 2021, but 2021-22 proved to be his breakthrough season, scoring 11 times and registering seven assists in 37 appearances.
Sesko is already off the mark for the new campaign, scoring twice and providing one assist in two appearances, including a goal and an assist in Salzburg's Austrian Bundesliga season opener against Austria Vienna on Friday.
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In all, he has scored 13 times in 40 appearances for Salzburg, while he has found the back of the net twice in 13 caps for Slovakia, last netting against Serbia in the UEFA Nations League in June of this year.
A two-time Austrian Bundesliga title winner, Sesko's first goal for Slovakia against Malta last October saw him become the country's youngest ever goalscorer at the age of 18 years, four months and eight days, following on from becoming the country's youngest ever debutant against North Macedonia in June 2021, just a day past his 18th birthday.
At 6ft 4in, Sesko is a towering presence, but he has the pace to match, so it is not too difficult to understand why there have been comparisons with a certain Erling Braut Haaland, which the youngster has welcomed.
"Such comparisons motivate me and give me energy," Sesko told reporters. "They do not represent pressure. I will listen and learn so I can be even better than he is.
"My teammates at the club tell me that Haaland and I are very similar, especially in terms of speed. Most of them even tell me that I'm better than him!"
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Sesko's agent, Elvis Basanovic, previously said that a number of "really big clubs" tried to sign the youngster back in 2019, but Salzburg ultimately won the race, paying a fee of £2.2m.
"We had a lot of offers from really big clubs," Basanovic told SPOX. "Had we decided on the money, Benjamin would have moved to England or Italy.
"But we decided to look at the bigger picture and the Salzburg project. The biggest clubs in Europe tried to get him. The interest in him was huge; I have never seen anything like it before.
"Salzburg has given Benjamin a path. Here, he can develop. The people in charge really wanted him, which was important to us. Here he also has a greater chance of playing for the first team sooner or later.
"Benjamin is one of the greatest talents of his age group in Europe. He has an incredible body, is tall, fast, has great jumping ability, is technically gifted and his greatest strength is his finishing."
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Man United are expected to sign at least one attacker before the end of the transfer window, with Ajax's Antony said to be a leading target for new head coach Erik ten Hag.
However, the Dutch champions have insisted that the Brazil international will not be leaving this summer, which could see the club switch their attention to Sesko.
Salzburg have the teenager on a deal until June 2026, placing them in a strong position when it comes to his future, but the Austrian giants will lose him sooner or later.
Romano has said that there is nothing 'imminent or advanced' for the moment, but Man United are likely to move if they sense the Slovenian slipping away from them, and he could prove to be one of the leading strikers in European football in the years to come.
Matt Law
