Benjamin Sesko’s injury history detailed ahead of Man United transfer
After a long and arduous summer of negotiations, Benjamin Sesko looks set to join Manchester United.
Despite holding a three-hour call with Newcastle United, the Slovenia international eventually chose the Red Devils and is now set to join Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha in Ruben Amorim’s revamped attack — according to David Ornstein.
In truth, United always looked like Sesko’s most likely destination once Arsenal had signed Viktor Gyokeres.
While Newcastle lick their wounds and chase other targets — such as Brentford’s Yoane Wissa — Man United now need Sesko to stay fit and healthy to help them compete in the upper echelons of the Premier League in 2025/26, not to mention the hunt for major silverware.
To that end, what is Sesko’s fitness record to date?
Benjamin Sesko’s injury record
Sesko boasts a remarkably clean bill of health.
According to Transfermarkt, the 22-year-old suffered multiple setbacks from a torn muscle fiber during the 2021/22 season, causing him to miss 13 matches for club and country.
However, since then, Sesko hasn’t missed a single game through injury, with his only other career absences being four games missed for FC Liefering and RB Leipzig combined due to suspensions.
That has allowed Sesko to clock up 210 senior club appearances already, notching 90 goals and 25 assists — alongside 16 goals in 41 caps for Slovenia.
How Sesko’s fitness record compares to Hojlund and Zirkzee
Sesko will now lead the line for Ruben Amorim, meaning we’ll probably see one of Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee leave Old Trafford — the club’s former chief scout, Mick Brown, telling Football Insider Hojlund is likely to be sold.
So, how does Sesko’s fitness record compare to that of United’s two existing options?
Hojlund has missed more matches through injury since the start of the 2023/24 season than Sesko has throughout his career so far, sitting out 18 games for club and country during that time due to hamstring, muscle and back problems, as well as an illness.
Seven of those games came last season due to a hamstring problem sustained during the summer, while the Dane missed an additional two games for Atalanta in 2022/23 due to Adductor pain.
Zirkzee suffered even more than Hojlund last season, missing 10 United games between April and June due to a thigh problem.
| Player | Career matches missed through injury |
| Benjamin Sesko | 13 |
| Rasmus Hojlund | 20 |
| Joshua Zirkzee | 50 |
The Netherlands international has missed a total of 50 matches due to injury and illness throughout his career so far, suffering from various hamstring and muscle complaints — though five of those games were also due to being in quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic.
Touch wood, United fans, but the Red Devils now seem to have a striker who can be consistently fit and firing for Amorim.