Sesko Injury Deepens Manchester United's Early-Season Woes
Benjamin Sesko was nowhere to be seen at Craven Cottage. For Manchester United, that absence felt louder than the away end.
The Slovenian striker, who started the chaotic 3-2 Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton in midweek, did not even make the bench for Sunday’s draw with Fulham. His omission was not tactical. It was troublingly familiar.
Sesko has suffered a recurrence of the shin problem that already wrecked the end of last season and wiped out his entire pre-season. That first spell on the sidelines cost him the final three games of the previous campaign and every minute of United’s summer schedule. Now, just as he was edging his way back, the same injury has flared again.
United manager Michael Carrick cut a measured but clearly frustrated figure when asked about his No 9 after the match.
“We're not sure with Ben yet,” he said. “He felt a bit of pain after the game [against Brighton] so we're assessing him. At the moment, he definitely wasn't ready for [Fulham], so I haven't really got any more news to give you at this point. We'll have to see what that brings.”
No timeline. No guarantees. Just more uncertainty for a side already stumbling through the opening weeks of the Premier League season.
A blunt start, and a missing focal point
The draw at Fulham leaves United with just one win from their first five league fixtures. Performances have been disjointed, goals hard-earned rather than flowing. In that context, Sesko’s continued stop-start campaign cuts deep.
The 23-year-old has managed only six appearances in all competitions so far, his season beginning late as a substitute at Hull on the opening weekend. He was supposed to grow into the role, to offer presence, movement, and a penalty-box edge. Instead, United are again reshuffling the deck in attack, searching for rhythm without the striker signed to provide it.
The pressure finally told in the way United played in west London: effort, territory, moments of control, but a lack of conviction in the final third. A fully fit Sesko changes the geometry of this team. Right now, that remains a theory rather than a reality.
Shaw returns, Baleba steps closer – but problems linger
There was at least one welcome sight on the teamsheet at Craven Cottage. Luke Shaw returned to the starting XI, a rare piece of continuity in a back line that has already absorbed its share of disruption this season. His presence brought a touch more balance, a familiar outlet on the left and some composure in possession.
On the bench, £70 million summer signing Carlos Baleba was included in a matchday squad for the first time after recovering from an ankle issue. He didn’t get on, but his name alone felt like progress for Carrick.
“Luke coming back is good for the squad. And having Carlos in the group for the first time... is important today,” the United manager said before kick-off. Important, because United’s injury list has been relentless.
Matthijs de Ligt travelled with the group to London but was not fit enough to feature. Amad Diallo is still waiting for his first appearance of the season. Across the pitch, Carrick’s options are being squeezed at precisely the point in the campaign when managers want to be building habits, not patching holes.
An anxious international break
Now comes a three-week international break that offers as many questions as answers. On paper, the pause gives United’s medical staff valuable time to assess and treat a squad creaking under early-season strain. In reality, it also brings the risk of further setbacks away from Carrington.
It is not yet clear whether Sesko will withdraw from Slovenia duty as he battles this latest flare-up. United will watch that situation closely. So will his national team, who know his value as well as Carrick does.
Marcus Rashford and Kobbie Mainoo are also doubts for England’s upcoming camp due to ongoing fitness concerns. For United, that uncertainty piles onto an already fragile start. For Gareth Southgate, it complicates his own plans in a crucial stretch of the international calendar.
A brutal run on the horizon
Once domestic football resumes, there will be no gentle reintroduction. United host Tottenham on 10 October in a fixture that has rarely lacked edge. Then comes a trip to Spain for a high-stakes Champions League tie against Atletico Madrid, a club that specialises in punishing any sign of weakness.
Carrick will hope that by then the picture is clearer: Shaw fully reintegrated, Baleba ready to contribute, De Ligt and Diallo edging closer, and, above all, Sesko back on a path that leads to the pitch rather than the treatment room.
Because if this early-season story is going to shift from stutter to surge, United cannot afford their main striker to become a recurring subplot in the medical updates.
