Benjamin Sesko has been on Newcastle United’s radar for a long time.
The Magpies want a striker in January to provide more quality should anything happen to Alexander Isak before the end of the season. It’s proving to be a difficult job for the Magpies.
As the third week of the transfer window comes to a close, Newcastle are still yet to make a single first-team signing.
It hasn’t stopped them from recruiting for their academy, however. Newcastle are set to announce Kyle Fitzgerald’s signing in late January and Georgian striker Vakhtang Salia has agreed to join the club in the summer.
Newcastle are linked to RB Leipzig man Sesko, enjoying a fine season in the Bundesliga. So far this season, the Slovenian has scored eight goals and bagged two assists. The 21-year-old has also made an impact on the Champions League this season, scoring three goals in six games.
The Magpies aren’t the only club keen to make a move for the striker. Arsenal rivalled Newcastle for Sesko’s signature in the summer and they don’t look like backing down.
Amid the interest, Sesko’s agent has commented on his client’s future. His words don’t completely rule Newcastle out.
Sesko has improved by snubbing Newcastle says agent
Instead of chasing a move in the summer, Sesko chose to stay at Leipzig to continue his development. The feeling in his camp was that if he stayed elsewhere for longer, he would be better prepared for a move to the Premier League.
Sesko’s agent Elvis Basanovic was recently asked about his client’s links to Arsenal by Arena Sport.
He said: “I think you should ask Mr. Arteta about that.
“But I think Sesko could suit many clubs because he has different football skills. He can play alone in attack, with two strikers, a little further back, he has height, speed, and technical speed.
“Benjamin Sesko is really shining, I think this is a phase of development. I think we have already shown in the past that we are sticking to the development path, that we are not looking at current form.”
“I don’t think Leipzig would be satisfied with any compensation at the moment, Leipzig does not want to sell Benjamin Sesko because they really value him immensely.”
Basanovic confirmed that Sesko had the opportunity to move to the Premier League in the summer but ultimately turned it down.
“We can see that our decision (to reject a Premier League move) was correct, six months later he is already a better striker than he was last season. What he lacks is experience. We must not forget that he is only 21 years old, so we did not want him to go to the Premier League in the summer.
“There were concrete options, but we consciously decided to stay in the Bundesliga to give him time to progress and develop into a better striker.”
A bonus for Newcastle should they sign him is that he will be Premier League-ready. At the moment, William Osula is the only fit striker who could take Isak’s place if anything were to happen to him. Osula scored his first Newcastle goal against Bromley on Sunday.
Elsewhere, Callum Wilson could return to Newcastle’s squad in February. The 32-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season and there’s no indication on whether Newcastle want him to sign an extension.
Sesko compared to Alexander Isak
Like Sesko, Newcastle striker Isak is having a magnificent season. The Swede has garnered praise from all over in recent weeks. Ally McCoist said Isak was “the best centre-forward in the Premier League” following a brace against Wolves.
| Appearances (All Competitions) | Goals | Assists | |
| Benjamin Sesko | 24 | 12 | 2 |
| Alexander Isak | 23 | 17 | 5 |
Newcastle are looking for a backup to Isak, but Sesko has the quality to play in Eddie Howe’s starting XI every week. Signing Sesko would give Howe a headache over how he could use the pair in the same team.
One possibility is to play Isak on the right wing. His dribbling ability would allow him to manoeuvre inside the box to set up Sesko or have a go himself.
Howe may still be reluctant to move Isak away from the number nine position due to how well he has played there this season.
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