Benjamin Sesko has signed his Manchester United contract, Fabrizio Romano reports.
The Slovenia international has therefore committed himself to the Red Devils ahead of his expected presentation at Old Trafford before Saturday’s friendly clash against Fiorentina.
Romano reports that Sesko has signed a five-year deal with Ruben Amorim’s side, bringing to an end a transfer saga that has stretched back more than a year.
Man Utd ultimately beat the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal and, most recently, Newcastle United to the 22-year-old centre-forward, who is expected to spearhead Amorim’s attack for the season ahead.
How Man Utd won Sesko race
Manchester United are expected to pay around €85 million for Sesko, despite offering the player less favourable financial terms than Newcastle.
The Transfers Podcast, powered by FootballTransfers, has revealed full details of the move, with Duncan Castles explaining.
A key factor was Christopher Vivell, Man Utd’s head of recruitment, who has a longstanding relationship with Sesko.
“I think you can see that that ability, that personal relationship, has helped sell Man Utd to the player. And in contrast, you have Newcastle United operating without a chief executive, operating without a director of football and one of their minority owners, Jamie Reuben, doing part of the direct negotiations to try and convince the player to come to Newcastle,” transfer insider Castles explained.
In addition to this, the structure of the deal was crucial. While Newcastle were initially willing to pay a higher fee for Sesko, Man Utd have included easier-to-attain bonus payments than their Premier League rivals.
Furthermore, Man Utd offered RB Leipzig the opportunity of a friendly match in the future, which is thought to be worth around €1.5m to the Bundesliga side.
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