Sam Allardyce has suggested that Manchester United should’ve signed Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta instead of Benjamin Sesko in the summer transfer window.
In a conversation on the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast, Sam Allardyce has suggested that Jean-Philippe Mateta was the ideal candidate to reinforce Manchester United’s offensive unit in the summer transfer window. The Red Devils signed Benjamin Sesko from RB Leipzig in a big-money deal. However, Allardyce does not rate that move highly.
Allardyce said, “Do you know who I’d have bought, more than anybody else? Mateta, absolutely. The centre-forward is absolutely brilliant and why they didn’t buy him, I don’t know, especially when the big strikers are coming back [into fashion].”
“You look at the size of the lad that Newcastle signed [Nick Woltemade], you look at the size of the centre-forwards again. Mateta is winning in a team, and winning the FA Cup, and getting to Europe, and it took him more than a year to do it. There aren’t many centre-forwards as good as he is. Why did nobody go: ‘Bang!’, Manchester United? Because he’s got everything.”
Jean-Philippe Mateta has established himself as one of the most underrated strikers in the Premier League since joining Crystal Palace from FSV Mainz 05. While the 28-year-old took some time to make his mark, he has gradually become a prolific striker under Oliver Glasner, who has brought the best out of the Frenchman.
The French striker has been hot off the blocks in the 2025/26 campaign, scoring four goals in ten outings across all competitions thus far. Meanwhile, Mateta’s progress in the last two seasons has not gone unnoticed, capturing the attention of several well-known clubs. Premier League outfits, in particular, have shown interest in the Crystal Palace striker.
Manchester United also mulled over signing Jean-Philippe Mateta in the summer transfer window, and Sam Allardyce believes the Frenchman would have been a top-notch addition to the struggling Premier League giants’ attack.
However, while Benjamin Sesko has scored only one goal since joining Manchester United from RB Leipzig, he can be a long-term solution in the final third for the Red Devils. It will be interesting to see if the Slovenian international can turn things around at Old Trafford and prove Allardyce wrong.