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I’ve seen Manchester United circle a solution to their No. 9 problem for months, and it finally looks like the club has settled on the profile they actually need. United have an agreement in principle to sign Benjamin Šeško from RB Leipzig, with final details being wrapped up after talks in Germany. The reported structure is an initial £66.3m plus around £7.4m in add-ons, and multiple outlets say Šeško has made Old Trafford his preferred destination over other suitors.
For a club trying to fix an attack that has often looked short of movement and goals, this is a swing with intent rather than panic. Sky’s reporting points to a deal nearing the finish line, while German and UK reports add that the salary and commission pieces were massaged to get it over the line quickly. That tells me two things. One, United wanted this specific player. Two, Šeško and his camp wanted the stage as much as the contract.
What is United buying?
Sesko is 22, a 6 ft 5 in center-forward who runs like a winger and finishes like a poacher when the game speeds up. The bigger question is always adaptation. People like to talk about a so-called “Bundesliga tax,” the idea that attackers dip when they cross into the Premier League. That theory has been wobbling for a while, and recent reporting argues clubs are no longer scared of it. Šeško’s age, pace, and off-ball habits put him in the group of Bundesliga exports expected to translate.
I like the fit because United have been crying out for three things. Vertical runs that pin center backs. A target who can play first time around the corner without slowing down counters. And a threat that drags defensive lines five to ten yards deeper, which in turn gives their wide players the room they keep asking for in interviews. Šeško’s game ticks all three.
How this rebuild actually looks on grass
This move only works if the pieces around him are simplified. United has too often layered cute rotations without fixing the basics. With Šeško, the structure can be straightforward. One winger holds the width on the weak side, the full-back overlaps on the strong side, and the 10 lives off wall passes. You create a runway for your striker, not a maze. That is the rebuild. Not ten new faces. A cleaner idea.
The other part I keep coming back to is pressing. United’s best passages in the last two seasons showed up when the front three pressed as a unit, not as freelancers. Šeško closes space with long strides and arrives with a body shape that naturally funnels play to a trap. If United commit to a simple mid-press trigger, they can manufacture five or six high regains per match. That is often the difference between a draw and a win in this league.
Rasmus Højlund, partnership or rotation?
I do not buy the zero-sum thinking here. Højlund’s best runs at United came when he started from slightly wider positions, then attacked the near post. A two-man look can work in specific fixtures, but even without changing the base shape, you can rotate minutes without losing identity. The point is not names on a teamsheet. The point is keeping the same verticality, whether Šeško or Hojlund starts.
The money and the message
United has taken criticism for stopgap spending, then overpaying for the next fix. This feels different. The fee is big, though not outlandish for a 22-year-old international with resale potential, and the structure suggests the club fought to keep add-ons performance-based rather than vanity clauses. More important than the spreadsheet is the signal. When a player passes on richer offers and chooses your project, people inside the dressing room feel it. The Telegraph and Sky both frame this as a tug-of-war; United actually won, which has been rare in recent summers.
What this means for the wider window
If the nine is secured, the rest becomes calmer. You can judge your wide players against a consistent focal point. You can plan set pieces with a clear first contact. You can build patterns that repeat. Even recruitment gets cleaner. Instead of buying five attackers to see who sticks, you shop for profiles that complement your striker’s lanes and your 10’s passing map. The ripple effect is often the hidden value of signing the right forward.
The risk column
There are always risks. The Premier League’s tempo punishes sloppy touches, and Šeško will be asked to bring down awkward diagonals in traffic. United will also need to protect him from isolation, because a young striker left to wrestle two center backs with 30 yards to goal will look ordinary no matter how talented he is. And yes, there is pressure. A big fee plus a famous shirt can turn good players into tight ones. None of that is surprising. It just means the coaching has to be serious from week one.
The payoff if it clicks
If United keep the structure simple, resist the urge to turn every attack into a choreographed dance, and commit to repeatable pressing triggers, Šeško’s strengths scale quickly. He does not need 15 touches to hurt you. He needs space and two teammates to make honest runs. The Premier League rewards that kind of stripped-back clarity. I have seen United talk about it for years. Signing a striker who forces you to live it is a good start.
Bottom line: United are close to landing their first-choice No. 9. Reports point to agreement on fee and framework, with final formalities pending. If the club sticks to a clear idea around him, Šeško can be less of a headline and more of a hinge. The rebuild becomes real not when the window shuts, but when the attack stops looking improvised and starts looking repeatable. This move gives them a fair shot at that.