Premier League legend Alan Shearer believes Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko will have a tough first season at the club. He highlighted the lack of service for the new signing, claiming that Ruben Amorim's players failed to capitalize on Sesko's aerial abilities and strengths against Manchester City.
Speaking on The Rest Is Football podcast, Shearer said he felt bad for Seskko as he played in a similar position. He believes that the Manchester United striker had nothing to do the entire game after his early shot and said:
“I look at Sesko, obviously I played in that position, he only had one shot on goal, very early on in the game. Other than that, he must [have] been thinking, ‘any chance of giving me something here?’ Something to go after, some crosses?"
Former England striker Gary Lineker also pointed out the lack of service for Sesko, saying that the striker was doing well, but his teammates constantly failed to spot his runs. He said:
“He was absolutely starved of any real service. He went through [on goal] once when he broke the offside trap and the keeper blocked his shot. He does look quick for a big guy. I watched him specifically for a lot of the game, as much as you can when you’re watching on TV rather than being at the game, and he’s making darting runs. I felt for him a little bit. It’s tough when you’re not getting any service."
Shearer believes that the Manchester City game set a template for how Manchester United would play this season, adding that it won't benefit Sesko. He claimed the striker was already under a lot of pressure and believed that the task of scoring goals for the Red Devils would make things worse with the current tactics. He said:
“I understand it. I saw him a couple of times last year in the Champions League, it’s a lot of money [United paid] for him. It’s a massive ask for him to take a club that is under huge pressure from where they are to where they are trying to get to. It’s a huge ask for him to be successful this season.”
Manchester United lost 3-0 to Manchester City on Sunday, September 14, at the Etihad. The Red Devils are 14th in the Premier League table, with four points from four matches.
Wayne Rooney feels sympathetic to Manchester United star
Manchester United legend Wayne Rooney spoke on his BBC show, admitting that the Manchester United players were crossing into the box aimlessly during the loss to Manchester City. He believes that they need to find the striker, Benjamin Sesko, instead of just hoofing the ball in and said (via Daily Mail):
"Sesko didn’t really have many opportunities and looked a bit off it fitness-wise but I thought United got into some really good areas. It looked like the crosses were just being put in there for the sake of it. What I will say for any centre forward or Sesko is when that’s happening it’s very difficult to time your run and to try to get on the end of things."
Manchester United face Chelsea next in the Premier League, with a trip to Brentford to follow. They have no other competition to play in until January, following their elimination from the Carabao Cup last month.