Chelsea tried to sign the Manchester United star (Picture: Getty)
Chelsea made a tempting offer to sign Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko three years before his move to Old Trafford.
Sesko completed a £74m move to United last summer but that was not the first time the Slovenia international had attracted interest from the Premier League.
Manchester United chiefs held talks with Sesko’s representatives in the summer of 2022 after he burst onto the scene at Red Bull Salzburg.
Sesko scored 18 goals during his first full season in Salzburg, with his impressive form catching the eye of United.
But the Red Devils were not the only Premier League giant to express interest in Sesko, with Chelsea also launching a move in that summer, according to The Sun.
Manchester United’s head of recruitment Christopher Vivell was at Stamford Bridge at that time and admired Sesko following his previous spell with the Red Bull group.
It is claimed Chelsea’s interest in Sesko was so concrete they even offered the then-teenager ‘whatever he wanted’ to agree a move to west London.
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Manchester United’s £74m summer signing Benjamin Sesko (Picture: Getty)
Sesko and his agent decided to reject the interest from both Chelsea and Man United, however, believing it was too early for the forward to move to the Premier League.
Instead he moved to Salzburg’s sister club RB Leipzig and continued to develop in Germany, scoring 39 goals across the next two seasons.
Manchester United kept tabs on Sesko throughout that period and sanctioned a huge £74m deal for him last summer.
A number of pundits questioned United’s summer signing following a subdued start to his United career in which he scored just twice before Christmas.
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But Sesko is one of a number of players benefitting from Michael Carrick’s return to United as caretaker boss, netting seven goals in eight games since Ruben Amorim’s sacking.
Two of those were crucial injury-time goals against Fulham and West Ham, while the most recent two were winners against Everton and Crystal Palace.
Carrick has predominately used Sesko from the bench but started the in-form 22-year-old in Sunday’s 2-1 win over Palace.
‘It wasn’t a gamble. It wasn’t that big of a decision,’ Carrick said when asked whether he took a risk starting Sesko. ‘Benjamin is in a good place and he has had a major impact in recent weeks.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DNJDWOBI8qM/?hl=en
‘He’s learning what it feels like to play here and to score the winner today is fantastic. We are here to help and I’m sure that will continue. He is willing to do whatever that is.’
Manchester United legend Gary Neville has been impressed by Sesko’s development under Carrick and believes he can be a ‘game-changing’ signing for his former club.
‘I have to say the goal from Benjamin Sesko is an absolute beauty,’ Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast. ‘It’s a brilliant header, a proper header.
‘He’s got confidence now and he got a start today which had to happen after his recent form. The confidence, the goals, the finishes… they’re some brilliant goals he’s scoring by the way.
Ex-Chelsea transfer guru Christopher Vivell (Picture: Getty)
‘He’s definitely improved enormously. Michael Carrick never picked him in the team, he didn’t pick him in the team until today so he’s obviously had doubts about him in terms of not being right or not being quite there.
‘The goal today is really good. I think he’s working Sesko into form and that’s a game-changer for Man United because they cannot have another centre-forward come to the club and fail. They just can’t.
‘[Bryan] Mbeumo and [Matheus] Cunha have looked like United players from the start, just in terms of their confidence, power and strength.
‘But now if Sesko can grow – and he already looks physically better and quicker – then that is a big, big thing.
‘If Carrick can get the best out of him that means in the summer you can concentrate on other positions like in midfield with Casemiro leaving. You can concentrate maybe on a full-back and a centre-back because they do still have problems in those positions still that need dealing with.
‘But maybe now you can leave the attacking players because you’ve got Sesko, Cunha, Mbeumo, Bruno, Amad, Mount – they will cause problems to any team.
‘Michael Carrick has doubled or trebled the value of the United squad from where they were under Ruben Amorim. He’s made players that we doubted look like really good players.
‘That will please the owners of course because there’s been so must waste it’s untrue. It’s a complete transformation.’
Sesko will look to continue his hot streak in front of goal on Wednesday when they travel to St James’ Park to face Newcastle United.
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