Man Utd make two-man shortlist to for Cristiano Ronaldo replacment including ex-Arsenal target
According to reports, Manchester United is considering Dusan Vlahovic and Benjamin Sesko as potential Cristiano Ronaldo replacements.
Erik ten Hag has recently reintroduced Ronaldo to the team after he refused to come off the bench against Tottenham last month.
The Portuguese forward has started United’s last three games to quell rumors about his potential January departure.
However, despite his recent appearances, the 37-year-old remains open to leaving the club, and with his contract expiring in June, Manchester United is weighing their options.
After the summer acquisitions of players such as Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, and Antony, the next phase of Ten Hag’s rebuild will involve the signing of a striker.
According to The Telegraph, Vlahovic and Sesko are two players who meet the criteria and are being considered for a transfer in 2023. United has had Sesko on their radar for some time; he is not a new target.
The 19-year-old striker for Red Bull Salzburg exploded onto the scene last season, but United has known him for much longer.
The Athletic reports that United were offered the chance to sign him for £2.5 million when he was 16, but they declined.
Sesko signed a contract with Salzburg’s sister club RB Leipzig in the summer and is currently back on loan with the Austrian club.
According to the report, Sesko will cost more than £40 million next year because Leipzig would not want to lose its young star.
Given that Juventus paid £66 million to sign the Serbian international from Fiorentina in January, Vlahovic would likely cost even more. United hopes that Juve’s Champions League failure will have repercussions in the future.
The 22-year-old has scored 17 goals in 36 appearances for Juventus, who now face a Europa League play-off in February after being eliminated from the Champions League with just one victory in six Group H matches.
Before Juventus won the race for Vlahovic’s signature from Fiorentina in January, he was heavily linked with Arsenal and Tottenham.
United’s options at center-forward are limited. Ronaldo is currently backed up by Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, but both players prefer to play on the flanks, so United are looking to sign a conventional No. 9.
Ten Hag made this clear following United’s 1-0 Europa League victory over Real Sociedad on Thursday. “We need options because we have problems there,” he said. “Antony, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho are all not available. It is a team and we are happy with our performances, Garnacho was a threat and was reliable defending. If he can continue that, I will be happy.”
He added: “We needed to bring extra offensive players in, but we were a little too erratic. We did not put our foot on the ball as much any more, there were fewer balls in the box. We had to take risks and that is what we did – but also keep a clean sheet.”
Man Utd make two-man shortlist to for Cristiano Ronaldo replacment including ex-Arsenal target
