RB Leipzig sporting director Marcel Schäfer confirmed that “strong interest” has been shown in the club’s star forward Benjamin Šeško at the same time as reports reveal an acceleration in Manchester United’s pursuit of a player Newcastle United have already bid for.
Amid Alexander Isak’s uncertain future, Eddie Howe’s side have settled on Šesko as their leading target. The Magpies reportedly tabled a formal offer worth €75 million (£65.3 million, $86.4 million) plus a further €5 million (£4.4 million, $5.8 million) in add-ons on Saturday which would have made him the club’s most expensive arrival of all time, surpassing Isak’s €70 million (£60.9 million, $80.6 million) fee.
Despite the record sums on offer, this bid fell short of Leipzig’s valuation, as The Athletic were the first to report. The Bundesliga club appear to want a sell-on clause included and have challenged the structure of Newcastle’s offer.
Negotiations are still ongoing yet Sky Sports News claim that Manchester United have also opened up a dialogue regarding a move for Šeško. Leipzig’s sporting director Schäfer revealed: “We won’t go into detail on that but when I say that several clubs have shown strong interest and have made approaches, it’s obvious what has happened.”
United are thought to have identified Šeško as their top priority in the remaining weeks of the transfer window despite previous reservations about the raw 22-year-old.
Just as Arsenal pivoted towards Viktor Gyökeres, United were thought to consider the Slovenia international overpriced and supposedly believed that he still needed “significant development”. Those fears have clearly been allayed after it emerged that Ruben Amorim’s side were more eager to sign Šeško than Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins or Chelsea forward Nicolas Jackson.
Šeško is described as being open to both Newcastle and Manchester United’s approaches after reportedly telling his RB teammates that he be moving on this summer.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Strong Interest’—Club Chief Speaks Out As Man Utd Rival Newcastle for Benjamin Sesko.