Sesko's Absence Sparks Debate at Manchester United
Benjamin Sesko has barely kicked a ball for Manchester United this season, but his absence is already dominating the conversation.
A shin injury wiped out his entire pre-season and has kept him out of Michael Carrick’s starting line-ups so far. In the meantime, Carrick has pushed Matheus Cunha into the role of central striker against Hull City, Ipswich Town, and Everton.
The experiment is not convincing everyone.
Wide men firing, centre dulled
Out wide, United look alive. Bryan Mbuemo and Marcus Rashford have opened the campaign brightly, stretching teams and carrying a threat on the flanks.
Down the middle, it’s a different story.
Cunha, signed from Wolves last year, has built his career drifting in from the left or operating off a main striker. Now he is being asked to lead the line. The result: a United attack that moves but rarely bites.
Sesko’s brief reminder of what a true No.9 can offer came at the Hill Dickinson Stadium. He rose to meet a Luke Shaw cross and powered in a superb header against Everton, a classic centre-forward’s finish. It should have been the winner.
Instead, Ainsley Maitland-Niles struck late to snatch a draw and leave United with another frustrating afternoon.
Scholes: “Very difficult to watch”
That performance pushed Paul Scholes over the edge.
Speaking on The Good, The Bad, and The Football, the former United midfielder tore into the display and, more pointedly, the tactical choices behind it.
“I felt it was really timid against Everton,” Scholes said. “There was no aggression and Everton were there for the taking. There was so much space and they never went for the throat.”
He didn’t stop there. For Scholes, the heart of the issue sits right at the top of the pitch.
“The centre forward position is a bit of an issue because he is not playing Sesko,” he added. “He is a focal point. It is very difficult to watch a Manchester United team without a centre forward.
“With Cunha, we don’t really know what he is, a No.10 or a wide player but he’s definitely not a No.9 and watching United without a No.9 is a struggle.”
It was as much a challenge to Carrick as it was a critique of the players.
Derby looming, pressure rising
The timing could hardly be sharper.
United have taken just four points from a possible nine in their opening three league games. Not disastrous, but hardly the statement Carrick needed at the start of a new campaign.
Across the city, Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City have started like a machine. Three league games, three wins, a perfect domestic record and an early sense of control.
They arrive at Old Trafford this weekend with momentum, confidence, and a settled identity. United arrive with questions. The biggest of them stands at 6ft 5in and is still waiting for his first start of the season.
Last year under Carrick, Sesko delivered a goal every 85 minutes. That sort of strike rate is not a luxury when City are in town; it feels like a necessity.
European audition for a No.9
Before the derby, though, comes Europe.
On Thursday, United host Azerbaijani side Sabah FK in the Champions League at Old Trafford. On paper, it looks like a manageable assignment. In reality, it could be something more important: a live audition.
If Carrick wants to see where Sesko is physically, this is the moment. Ninety minutes under the lights, a chance to test that shin, to sharpen his timing, to reconnect with the supply line from Shaw and the wide men.
For Sesko, it is an opening he cannot afford to waste. For Carrick, it might be the final piece he needs before City roll into town.
Does he stick with Cunha as a roaming, hard-working forward who blurs positions? Or does he restore a pure No.9 and give his team the focal point Scholes insists they lack?
The derby will provide the answer. The Champions League might decide it.
