Newcastle are ‘pushing’ to reach an agreement with RB Leipzig ‘tonight’ for Benjamin Sesko after the striker told them he’s ‘willing to sign for the club’.
The Magpies have already had a bid worth €80m rejected by RB Leipzig for Sesko as the Bundesliga club were not happy with the structure of the deal despite the Magpies reaching their valuation.
Sky Germany reporter Philipp Hinze claimed on Monday that Manchester United are prepared to ‘match’ the €80m asking price and Leipzig ‘would welcome a possible bidding war’.
Hinze wrote on X: ‘Further talks regarding Benjamin Sesko took place last night and have been continuing since this morning. Sesko’s agents are still in Leipzig. Negotiations are ongoing. As reported: Manchester United are ready to match Newcastle’s offer.
‘Everything depends on Sesko. A top situation for Leipzig, who would welcome a possible bidding war. Newcastle’s offer was attractive for Leipzig – but the payment structure would need to be adjusted.’
But any move depends on Sesko’s decision and Bild claimed later on Monday that the Slovenian has ‘told both clubs he only wants to join them’.
Newcastle are said to want clarity ‘quickly’ and the report claimed they have set a ‘short deadline’ for the potential transfer, later reported to be 48 hours, now thought to be just 24 hours.
Bild added that United will only make an offer if/when Sesko rejects Newcastle and ‘commits’ to the Red Devils, with the striker said to be ‘slightly favouring’ a move to Old Trafford, but Newcastle have now ‘been given encouragement the striker wants to join’, according to the Daily Mail.
The report added:
‘Sesko is Newcastle’s top attacking target and there is a determination to accelerate a deal, especially after they were told on Monday he is willing to sign for the club.
‘The Magpies would like an outcome one way or the other over the next 24 hours, given their need to bring in a striker ahead of the season opener at Aston Villa a week on Saturday.’
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Football finance expert Stefan Borson claims United would be setting themselves up for “disaster” by signing Sesko, who could be another expensive “failed forward” in a long line of them in recent years.
Speaking to Football Insider, Borson said: “As with all of these deals, if it works, it’s a bargain, right?
“It’s £69million for a 22-year-old striker. If it works, he’s worth three times that by the time you’ve had 10 years of a top striker.
“If it fails, then they’ve got another disaster on their hands because we know that they’ve got a whole succession of failed forwards that they bought over the last few years, so it’s very difficult for United to know one way or the other.
“They have got to be able to sort of lay their bets and hope, and Sesko will fall into that category.”
