Where is Benjamin Sesko? Manchester United's Striker Dilemma
Manchester United’s season is barely out of first gear, and already one question hangs over Old Trafford: where is Benjamin Sesko?
The Slovenian striker has yet to start a game this campaign, his progress stalled by a shin injury that wiped out his entire pre-season. While he recovered, Michael Carrick turned to Matheus Cunha through the middle against Hull City, Ipswich Town and Everton.
It hasn’t quite worked.
A Blunt Edge Up Front
Out wide, United look alive. Bryan Mbuemo has carried threat. Marcus Rashford has started brightly. But through the centre, the attack has lacked bite, presence, and that ruthless edge in the box.
Cunha, signed from Wolves last year, has always looked more at home drifting in from the left, linking play rather than finishing it. Asking him to lead the line has only sharpened the debate over his true role. Is he a No.10? A wide forward? What he hasn’t looked like is a classic No.9.
Sesko, by contrast, offered a sharp reminder of what United are missing. Coming off the bench against Everton, he rose to meet a Luke Shaw cross and buried a superb header. It was the kind of finish that changes games, the kind that makes defenders nervous long before the ball arrives.
Yet even that moment of quality wasn’t enough. A late equaliser from Ainsley Maitland-Niles at the Hill Dickinson Stadium denied United victory and left the performance open to scrutiny.
Scholes Tears Into Carrick’s Call
On The Good, The Bad, and The Football, Paul Scholes didn’t hold back. The former United midfielder tore into the display at Everton and, more pointedly, into Carrick’s tactical choices.
“I felt it was really timid against Everton,” Scholes said. “There was no aggression and Everton were there for the taking. There was so much space and they never went for the throat.”
He went straight for the core of the issue: the team sheet.
“The centre forward position is a bit of an issue because he is not playing Sesko,” he continued. “He is a focal point. It is very difficult to watch a Manchester United team without a centre forward. With Cunha, we don’t really know what he is, a No.10 or a wide player but he’s definitely not a No.9 and watching United without a No.9 is a struggle.”
It was not a passing comment. It was a demand for change.
Derby Looms, Pressure Rises
The timing could hardly be more brutal for Carrick. United have collected just four points from a possible nine in their opening three league fixtures. Not a crisis, but nowhere near convincing.
Across town, Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City are already moving with familiar authority. Three league games, three wins, and a flawless domestic record heading into the first Manchester derby of the season. They look settled, sharp, and sure of themselves.
United do not.
That contrast piles even more weight onto the Sesko decision. Under Carrick last season, the striker delivered a goal every 85 minutes. That is elite output, the kind of return managers build systems around, not leave on the bench.
If United are serious about halting City’s momentum, it is hard to ignore a striker with that kind of record.
European Stage, Perfect Trial
Before City arrive at Old Trafford on Sunday, United must first deal with a different kind of challenge. Sabah FK come to town on Thursday for a Champions League tie that suddenly feels more than just a routine group fixture.
For Sesko, it could be a lifeline.
A start against the Azerbaijani side would give him the minutes he has been denied, the chance to sharpen his movement, timing and understanding with those around him. It would also give Carrick a clear look at whether his No.9 is ready for the intensity of a derby that could shape the early narrative of United’s season.
A strong performance on the European stage might do more than lift United into control of their group. It might force the manager’s hand.
Because if Old Trafford watches another 90 minutes against City without a recognised centre forward, the noise around Carrick’s selection will not just grow. It will roar.
