Paul Merson singled out Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko as part of his major prediction for the forthcoming Premier League match against Everton.
Benjamin Sesko suffered an injury setback and the Manchester United summer signing is set to miss the first match in the post-November international break.
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The 22-year-old Slovenian was forced off the pitch late in the second half of United’s 2-2 comeback draw against Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this month.
It has been reported that Sesko is likely to be out of action for at least a month after his knee injury, which made him also miss Slovenia’s World Cup qualifying matches.
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The Slovenia international came off the bench in the second half of United’s encounter with Tottenham and replaced Noussair Mazraoui in the 59th minute.
United were forced to see out the Premier League match with 10 men after Sesko left the pitch due to injury and Ruben Amorim had used all five substitutions.
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Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim with Benjamin Sesko during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2025 in London, England.
Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images
Paul Merson makes a powerful Benjamin Sesko point amid his Premier League prediction for the Everton match
Benjamin Sesko has had a slow start to his Manchester United career, with the former RB Leipzig ace netting only two times in 12 matches across all competitions.
The Slovenia and United striker has been Ruben Amorim’s main pick to lead the frontline since the Red Devils signed him in a deal worth £73.7m in August.
Paul Merson has now suggested that Sesko’s absence for United could unlock a new dynamic for the Everton match, with Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo linking up.
Speaking in his column for Sportskeeda, he said: “Benjamin Sesko being ruled out does not help Everton because they would rather play against him.
Ruben Amorim vs David Moyes records at Manchester United
Infographic by SofaScore showing Ruben Amorim vs David Moyes record at Manchester United.
Infographic by SofaScore showing Ruben Amorim vs David Moyes record at Manchester United.
“If Sesko played, Everton know what they are up against and how to mark him.
“When it’s Matheus Cunha playing that false-nine role, it’s entirely different.
“One second, you’re looking at Cunha and the next thing you know it’s Bryan Mbeumo also working in tandem with him.
“With Sesko, United can only play one way and that would have been easier to deal with.”
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Paul Merson’s feelings on the Premier League scoreline for the Man Utd vs Everton clash at Old Trafford
Merson admitted that United have shown a turnaround in recent weeks and the Red Devils are building momentum, despite underlining his remarks with caution.
“Manchester United are slowly starting to find some rhythm,” he said.
“I say that carefully because we wouldn’t have said this about them last season or the one before that.
“United have been quite bad in terms of stitching together a run of results, but there is a bit of hope now.”
What David Moyes told Ruben Amorim to ‘fix’ at Man Utd 🗣️🎙️
It’s not always calling the players out, but I see a little bit where I think the players are quite happy to hide behind the manager and let him take the hit for them. I could do with some of them saying, ‘I’m not quite at it at the moment, not playing well.’
We’re not getting much of that. That work rate is the first thing that any manager has to talk with players about.
-Speaking on The Overlap’s Stick to Football podcast in 2024
United have won three of their last five Premier League matches and Sky Sports pundit Merson has backed Amorim’s men to beat Everton 2-0 at Old Trafford.
“I said Manchester United won’t beat Forest even though they were flying at the time,” Merson added.
“That draw was disappointing, but I expect them to make amends with a win this weekend.”
David Moyes’ Everton side will visit Old Trafford on Monday evening and United’s Premier League match is slated for an 8pm kick-off time in the UK.