Manchester United have reached an agreement with Red Bull Leipzig to sign Benjamin Sesko in a deal valued at £73.7 million (€85 million).
The deal consists of a guaranteed £66.3 million (€76.5 million), with the rest coming through performance-related add-ons.
Sesko is set to complete the necessary procedures, including a medical on Friday, ahead of sealing his transfer to Old Trafford.
The 22-year-old Slovenia forward, who was also wanted by Newcastle, has scored 39 goals in 87 appearances for German side Leipzig.
United have aready signed forwards Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo this summer for a combined fee of around £130m.
The payment structure for the Sesko deal has been arranged in a way that gives Manchester United financial flexibility to continue spending. Additionally, Marcus Rashford’s full £325,000-a-week wages are being covered by Barcelona during his loan spell.
United also received a £5 million fee from Chelsea after the London club backed out of a move for Jadon Sancho.
Furthermore, the club could generate up to £50 million by selling Alejandro Garnacho, with Chelsea expressing interest and the winger being informed he can leave this summer.
Last season’s lead striker, Rasmus Hojlund, has also been put up for sale at a price of £40 million, following a return of just 14 Premier League goals across two campaigns.
Benjamin Sesko’s decision to join Manchester United delivers another setback to Newcastle United, who had already lost out on Hugo Ekitike to Liverpool and now risk seeing their star striker, Alexander Isak, follow him to Anfield.
Since arriving in Germany, Benjamin Sesko has emerged as the highest-scoring under-23 player in all competitions among those in Europe’s top five leagues, netting 39 goals in 87 appearances. That puts him one goal ahead of Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham and five clear of Florian Wirtz, who made a £100 million switch to Liverpool from Bayer Leverkusen this summer.
Sesko is known for his physical presence, speed, aerial ability, and clinical finishing, earning comparisons to Erling Haaland—not only due to their shared history at Salzburg, but also their playing style. He clocked one of the fastest speeds among Bundesliga strikers at 35.7 km/h and had the highest aerial duel success rate among forwards with at least 60 attempts.
