Background on Benjamin

The powerful, athletic centre-forward started out in junior football with his hometown side Radece located between Ljubljana and Zagreb, where he had two spells either side of a short stay at Rudar Trbovilje. By the time he was performing at Under-15s level, he was with Krsko, the goals were flowing at a staggering rate (59 in 23 league games) and he made the Slovenia national team in this age group.

A switch to top-flight side Domzale soon led to greater awareness of his prodigious talents.

Remarkably, this is even when United were first linked with the rookie hitman but it has been reported that he was keen not to move into one of the major leagues too soon, preferring to learn his trade step by step.

A tally of 21 goals in 23 league games in 2018/19 spoke volumes about his talent and he only stayed a season before becoming a professional with RB Salzburg, in Austria, at the age of 16.

The move to a new country was a huge moment for Sesko, and it was deemed the best option for his development was a loan spell.

Partner club Liefering were the preferred destination in the 2020/21 season and he made an instant impression, bagging 21 goals in 29 appearances in the Austrian second tier.

Promotion to the RB Salzburg senior squad was inevitable but he also represented the Austrians in the UEFA Youth League, playing against Liverpool and helping the side reach the semi-finals before narrowly going out to Real Madrid, with the competition extended due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

By the time he was 19, the natural next step was announced with the news the centre-forward would join partner club RB Leipzig and attempt to continue his progress in Germany.

At that point, he had started every game of the season and speculation was rife about interest from the Premier League.

Perhaps tellingly, though, the plan was carefully managed for Sesko, who would continue to play at Salzburg for the 2022/23 term before beginning a five-year contract with Leipzig in 2023/24.

Speaking to the Austrian club's official website, he addressed the future move with clarity, conviction and maturity, giving the impression that he was somebody who wanted to progress by gaining the required experience along the way.

"I have read and heard so much about me in recent weeks and a lot of it had no basis in reality," he stated. "In order to end the speculation and fully concentrate on my tasks here, it was important for me to arrange the next steps in my career already.

"I wanted to gain clarity as soon as possible on the way ahead. Absolutely nothing has changed for me personally otherwise and I will still give everything as we have a lot of plans this season."

After becoming Slovenia's youngest debutant and then scorer, following his goal in 2021 against Malta, his star continued to rise.

An 18-goal haul in his maiden season with Leipzig also included a run of netting in seven consecutive Bundesliga outings. More intense rumours circulated around his future last summer, but he committed further to the Red Bull Arena by agreeing a fresh contract.

Following a summer when he represented his country at Euro 2024, coming up against an England side featuring Kobbie Mainoo, and hitting the woodwork from long range in a game against a Denmark team containing Christian Eriksen and Rasmus Hojlund, a hat-trick against Kazakhstan in the UEFA Nations League served further notice of his credentials.

Top scoring with 21 goals at domestic level, another fruitful campaign meant the clamour for his services became pretty irresistible. 

After his first international hat-trick, Sesko's comments at the time betray his view about putting the ball in the back of the net.

"It's my job to do that," he stressed. "I like the feeling when I score, also as it helps the team, of course. It doesn't matter if it's for club or country, it always feels great to make others feel happy, as well as myself.

"For me, it's just important to keep going that way. I will try to score as many goals as possible."

We all eagerly await being able to celebrate the striker hitting the net for his new club, welcome to United, Benji!