And the new…. (Part 1 of 3)

So who’s up next? The modern number 9s who are going to transform the game and carry the torch of their forefathers?

Benjamin Sesko

Age : 21

Height : 6 foot 4

Club : RB Leipzig

24/25 Stats : 35 Apps 17 G + 5 A

“Alexa create me the perfect number 9”. 

A football manager wonderkid (IFYKYK) who I have signed on numerous occasions , I was delighted to get his shirt when Northern Ireland played Slovenia in 2023. At this point he was beginning to be mentioned in the conversations of the next generation of 9s and I could see why. Interestingly Slovenia set up to bait our press and then hit the front early with Sesko partnered with Sporar (yes that Sporar) and they caused chaos, basically engineering counter attacking situations by enticing us to come and press and going beyond. That night he was the closest thing I’d seen to a certain Norwegian who had scored a hattrick against us a few years earlier. The Bundesliga seems the perfect league to develop in currently for young players as they are given opportunities but also not expected to be the finished article at 20/21 (Hojlund springs to mind!).

Listen, I’m no data scientist and I’m not going to pretend to be but 6 foot 4, top 25 quickest recorded sprint speed in the Bundesliga and a shot like a sledgehammer. Tick , tick , tick. Sesko is a problem.

10 goals for Sesko in the Bundesliga with 6 right footed, 2 left and 2 headers suggest this guy can pretty much do it all. 

Interestingly Leipzig are 14^th/18 for crosses so we might not even be seeing the full extent of Sesko’s aerial ability. Will be interesting to see where he ends up next (Arsenal please!)