Manchester United are interested in hijacking Tottenham’s move for Randal Kolo Muani after being snubbed by top striker target Benjamin Sesko.
It was claimed last week that Sesko was leaning towards a move to Old Trafford, even without European football, amid claims from Fabrizio Romano that footballers are now “scared” to join Newcastle.
But in quite the quite the change in fortune for Newcastle when paired with Liverpool backing off in their bid to sign Alexander Isak, a report from Sesko’s homeland claimed the striker has ‘made a decision’ and ‘will continue his career with Newcastle United’.
The Slovenian outlet Delo stated:
‘Slovenian football star Benjamin Šeško has made a decision. According to well-informed sources, he will continue his career with Newcastle United.
‘After being linked with Arsenal for a long time, who ultimately decided to sign excellent Swedish striker Viktor Gyökeres instead of Šešek, and a few days ago, Manchester United warmed up to the 22-year-old Radečan, the battle for our international player was ultimately won by the management of Newcastle United.’
Later on Saturday, former footballer turned journalist Jan Aage Fjørtoft revealed Newcastle have now tabled a huge bid for Sesko, significantly above Leipig’s reported asking price of £64m, before transfer expert Sacha Tavolieri suggested a key reason for the striker’s supposed U-turn.
Fjortoft wrote on X: ‘Newcastle have reportedly tabled a €90m [£78m] bid for Šeško. Could this give them the edge in the race for his signature? The player’s preference is Manchester United, and to my knowledge, the player has not changed his mind. RB Leipzig are of course keen to secure the highest possible fee if they decide to sell.’
Tavolieri wrote on X: ‘Newcastle United has taken advantage on Manchester United for Benjamin Sesko! #NUFC has increased significantly the personal terms offer and received final green light from Sesko to proceed on talks with RB Leipzig, now expected to deal around €90M deal on it. #mercato’
It’s therefore back to the drawing board for United, who have also approached Aston Villa over Ollie Watkins and also hold interest in Chelsea’s Nicolas Jackson.
But Foot Mercato journalist Santi Aouna claims the Red Devils are also ‘monitoring’ Paris Saint Germain’s Kolo Muani, who’s currently the subject of Tottenham ‘talks’.
Aouna wrote on X: ‘Tottenham wants Randal Kolo Muani. Talks underway. No agreement yet with Juventus but positive talks for the moment. The negociations between Juve and PSG are stalled for weeks and the two clubs are, FOR NOW, far from an agreement. Manchester United et Newcastle are monitoring the situation.’
Ruben Amorim is also keen on adding a new centre-back to his ranks according to Spanish outlet Nacional, who claim United’s interest in Barcelona’s Ronaldo Araujo has ‘intensified’ in a battle for his signature with AC Milan.
‘Both clubs offer Araujo immediate ownership’ – i.e. a starting spot – which is thought to be ‘an important incentive for a footballer who does not want to spend another season on the bench.’
United and Milan are said to have each put ‘€30m [£26m] on the table’ for the centre-back, who’s also thought to be on Tottenham’s radar.
The report adds:
‘Although Araujo is not among the transferable players, he does enter the list of potential sales if there are convincing offers and the footballer has no place in the starting eleven. Flick has been clear: he has him, but he does not guarantee him prominence.
‘For his part, Araujo has not formally requested to leave, but his environment does not hide that he is evaluating options. At 26 years old and several interested clubs, he knows that he is at a key moment in his career. He does not want to repeat a year as a substitute or see his presence in the Uruguayan national team conditioned.’