Manchester United suffered a Carabao Cup defeat to Grimsby Town on penalties and Benjamin Sesko has been criticised after being the 10th player to step up in the shootout
Benjamin Sesko playing for Manchester United
Benjamin Sesko has faced criticism after Manchester United's defeat to Grimsby
(Image: Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)
Benjamin Sesko was reportedly not among Manchester United's chosen penalty takers due to suffering with cramp. Ruben Amorim's squad endured a disastrous penalty shootout loss to Grimsby on Wednesday, with the striker finding himself under scrutiny after being the last outfield player for United to take a spot kick.
Sesko joined United from RB Leipzig earlier this summer, marking the club's third new forward following the previous signings of Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo. The 22-year-old Slovenian had made appearances as a substitute in United's first two Premier League matches but started against Grimsby at Blundell Park.
The forward attempted six shots in total, with two on target, but was unable to secure a winning goal for United, who managed to force a penalty shootout after trailing 2-0. However, Sesko stepping up as United's 10th penalty taker arguably drew more attention than his overall performance, though a possible explanation has emerged.
According to BBC Sport, Sesko was designated as United's final outfield penalty taker due to experiencing cramp. The match against Grimsby marked the striker's first full competitive 90 minutes since scoring for Leipzig in a 1-1 draw with Holstein Kiel on 19 April.
Sesko netted United's 10th penalty to bring the shootout level at 9-9 before goalkeepers Andre Onana and Christy Pym both scored from the spot. The sequence then began again, with Grimsby triumphing 12-11 on penalties following Mbeumo's decisive miss.
A cramp issue would explain why Sesko was not expected to be relied upon in the shootout. However, seeing defenders Harry Maguire, Diogo Dalot and Matthijs de Ligt all take penalties ahead of him hardly boosted confidence in Sesko during the early stages of his United career.
Benjamin Sesko misses a chance for Manchester United
Sesko had six shots during the 90 minutes against Grimsby
(Image: George Wood/Getty Images)
Amorim has previously stated that the player is still adjusting to English football following his arrival from Germany, in contrast to Cunha and Mbeumo, who joined from Wolves and Brentford, respectively. Sesko's early performances have raised mild concerns amongst pundits, though Amorim has urged for patience.
"I think he needs time," Amorim said of Sesko after United's draw with Fulham last weekend. "It’s not easy. Sometimes you are on the bench and go to the game and the game is really fast, he’s understanding that the game is even faster than the Bundesliga.
"But he is fighting, he had some good connections with teammates, I felt that when he was on the pitch we were not in our best moment and that can change the way you see a player. So I’m really happy because he’s putting in all the effort, we just need to be in a better moment sometimes to help him to show the talent he has."
When asked why Sesko had been named on the bench against Fulham, Amorim explained: "We try to imagine what is going to happen during the game. Our game needs to be consistent, the way we control the game. We need to have options to play a different game from the bench.
"Sesko has had two weeks with us so it's trying to understand everything. I try to understand how these small things are for the player. I talk to the players often and sometimes we need to wait a little bit in order to help the player. We just want to win the game."
Benjamin Sesko playing for Manchester United
Benjamin Sesko was unable to get on the scoresheet in his first Manchester United start
(Image: Nigel French/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
United will be looking to bounce back from their Carabao Cup elimination when they welcome Burnley to Old Trafford on Saturday. Whether Sesko will retain his starting position up front or find himself among the substitutes for another Premier League clash remains to be seen. However, Amorim was honest about his team's performance following United's surprising midweek defeat
"I know that the best team won, the only team that was on the pitch," Amorim said. "I think the team and the players spoke really loud today. So that's it.
"We lost, the best team won. I think it was really clear for everybody what happened today. It's not just the space [we gave them], but the way we started the game without any intensity – we were completely lost.
"It's hard to explain. That's why I think they spoke really well. I think they gave the response on the pitch today. When you see something that, like today, it's hard to talk."