The decision of Benjamin Sesko to pen a new deal at RB Leipzig brings to a close one of the summer transfer window’s most prominent potential deals.
The 21-year-old Slovenian forward, off the back of an impressive debut campaign in the Bundesliga, had been hotly tipped to make a move to the Premier League this summer, with Arsenal and Chelsea both suitors.
Also courting the former Red Bull Salzburg forward were Manchester United, with Sesko seen as the kind of profile player that minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe had wanted to see the club enter the market for. And it could be that this move by the player is actually beneficial for United.
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According to multiple reports, Sesko had a release clause of £55m that existed in his current contract after the end of June, but in choosing to extend his stay with Marco Rose’s men he will now be a more valuable asset for Leipzig by the time January, or likely next summer, comes along.
The transfer market may well be a little flat this summer in terms of money being spent. The biggest drivers of transfer spend, the Premier League, has a number of its clubs - even members of the ‘big six’ - who need to be mindful of the cost controls that exist through Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
Chelsea are in the process of trying to move players on to help fund their own business. Arsenal, beneficiaries of Champions League money last season and guaranteed more of it next season, had to be wary of spending in January owing to the heavy outlay in acquiring the likes of £105m Declan Rice.
United, with no Champions League football next season, but with the cushion of Europa League football at least, have some concerns over making the maths work themselves.
According to figures presented by football finance expert Swiss Ramble, based on estimates for the 2023/24 financial year, a year which the three-year PSR period would no longer include the allowable deduction for the impact of the pandemic on the business, United will be under the threshold by some £31m.
That is a healthy gap for United, but with a significant amount of work to be undertaken to address the deficiencies that lie within the squad, it might not provide ample room for manoeuvre for the club until such time they improve their player trading position.
Players such as Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford have been mooted as potential exits for United, with the club likely to make little in terms of profit on Sancho given his remaining book value of around £29m. Rashford, as an academy graduate, would be pure profit, although his value in the market has tumbled significantly due to poor form, with the 26-year-old omitted from the England squad for Euro 2024, further impacting value.
Another season for United to allow them to clear the decks a little with a view to next summer being when some serious surgery can be done. If they managed to return to the riches of Champions League football, it's likely that they enter the Sesko conversation again in a healthier financial position.
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