Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko is pushing for his first start of the season after scoring as a substitute in a 2-2 draw at Everton, with media in his native Slovenia openly questioning head coach Michael Carrick's reluctance to pick him.
Slovenian broadcaster 24ur Sport, which holds domestic rights to the Premier League, asked in its build-up coverage whether Sesko was "a victim of the coach's system." Rival outlet Ekipa said fans were "firmly against Carrick" after Sesko came off the bench to replace Matheus Cunha and score at Everton on Sunday.
Ekipa described Cunha's performance as "catastrophic," saying the Brazilian forward, who plays as a false nine ahead of Sesko in Carrick's team, ended the match with zero shots on target, zero assists and zero dribbles, lost the ball 11 times and lost every aerial duel he contested.
Carrick now has to manage his squad's minutes across two matches in quick succession: United's Champions League opener at home to Azerbaijani side Sabah on Thursday, followed by the 199th Manchester derby against Manchester City at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Sabah test and United's poor start
Sabah only came into existence in 2017 and are managed by Valdas Dambrauskas, who paid for his coaching education with money won on the Lithuanian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire? in 2002. Despite the gulf in stature, Carrick cannot afford to lose given United have taken just four points from their opening three Premier League games against Hull, Ipswich and Everton, leaving little margin for error before facing City.
Whether that persuades Carrick to give Sesko his first start remains to be seen. It depends on whether the head coach sticks with the false-nine system in his 4-2-3-1 formation, which he has used throughout pre-season and the opening weeks of the campaign, with Cunha occupying the central striker role since Bryan Mbeumo moved back to the right wing following Amad Diallo's injury.
Recovery, training and a big birthday
Sesko spent the summer recovering from a shin injury that ended his first United season early, following his £74million move from RB Leipzig, and did not feature in any pre-season matches. His 23rd birthday was marked with a private party for his fan club in his hometown of Radece.
Former United manager Ruben Amorim once called Sesko "a control freak," and the striker has since bought a house fitted with its own gymnasium, pool, ice bath and sauna. He also uses the hyperbaric chamber at United's Carrington training base, red-light therapy and a personal fitness trainer, along with virtual reality glasses to simulate game scenarios, a mind coach and meditation.
Carrick said on Wednesday that Sesko was "obviously getting closer and closer" after missing football since the end of April, adding that the club had to look after him to get him fit. He said Sesko had trained fully without restrictions for three and a bit weeks and that his goal against Everton was "a fantastic goal." Carrick said Sesko was "in a good place" and would be "part of each and every game," with only the timing of a first start still to be decided.
A striker who thrives when picked
Sesko scored just twice under Amorim before the Portuguese coach was sacked in January. He was given a run of starts by caretaker manager Darren Fletcher and scored three goals in two games, then added seven more in 13 games under Carrick, despite starting the first six of those on the bench. A run of four consecutive starts ended when injury struck, after which Carrick switched to the false-nine system with Cunha, a approach continued this season and reportedly mirrored by United's Under-21 and Under-18 sides.
Cunha has struggled to provide a focal point this season, often dropping deep or drifting wide, with captain Bruno Fernandes frequently the most advanced United player in attack. Fernandes scored a hat-trick against Ipswich, while Mbeumo scored against the same opponents and added a solo goal at Everton. Marcus Rashford has also impressed since returning to the side and was arguably United's best player at Everton before going off with an overstretched hamstring. Should Rashford be unavailable against Sabah, Cunha could move to the left flank or be rested, potentially opening a route into the side for Sesko.
The Everton goal
United were outshot 18-14 by Everton and recorded a lower expected-goals figure than their hosts, with Cunha blazing over the bar when he should have scored before he was substituted for Sesko. Standing 6ft 5in tall and noticeably more muscular this season, Sesko gave United a more physical presence up front and headed in a Luke Shaw cross to put United ahead, only for Ainsley Maitland-Niles to equalise late on.
"It's nice to be back," Sesko said. "It's the best feeling when I'm scoring, especially like that. It's my job to provide goals and points for the team." Asked whether his performance would be enough to earn a start against Sabah, 24ur Sport said it "seems like the perfect opportunity."
