Manchester United have sifted through a familiar pile of problems so far this season, but there’s been enough about Ruben Amorim’s side to suggest a turnaround may yet be on the horizon.
A daunting trip to Anfield looms large for the Red Devils now that the October international break has been wrapped up, and INEOS will expect to see an upswing in results, having unlocked their purse and spent a pretty penny on new signings this summer.
Liverpool
7
£415m
Chelsea
10
£285m
Arsenal
8
£255m
Newcastle
7
£250m
Man United
5
£216m
Given that last year’s 15th-place Premier League finish and defeat by Tottenham Hotspur in the Europa League final have limited Amorim and his team to domestic action only this year, it’s impressive that INEOS granted a significant outlay to help get Old Trafford back on track.
Among those arrivals was Benjamin Sesko, who hasn’t quite hit the ground running after joining from German side RB Leipzig.
Man Utd considering Sesko upgrade
This month, Sesko put the brakes on his Man United progress, having scored two goals in succession, heading out for international action with Slovenia.
He didn’t carry his form over to the World Cup qualifiers, but the 22-year-old striker has shown in recent weeks his capacity to succeed at the Theatre of Dreams, with Wayne Rooney citing the star’s aerial “influence” as proving a “handful” for Sunderland two weeks ago.
But with Rasmus Hojlund now out on loan with Napoli and with a mandatory purchase option worth £38m, there’s a sense Amorim and Man United technical director Jason Wilcox might be seeking an alternative at number nine.
Well, according to Spanish sources this week, that player could be Mateo Retegui, who is already attracting intrigue after leaving Atalanta for Al Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia this summer.
The 26-year-old cost his new outfit a reported £56m in July, and so would cost United a heavy outlay if they were to pursue this market potential.
In fact, the Spanish media suggest a fee in the region of €60m (about £52m) would do the trick.
But two strikers are better than one, and with United planning to return to European competition by the start of next term, adding Retegui to the ranks might be a shrewd move.
Would his success come at Sesko’s expense?
Why Mateo Retegui is perfect for Man Utd
Retegui, an Italy international but born and raised in Argentina, left his South American homeland in 2023 and joined Genoa, scoring nine times across the 2023/24 campaign and piquing the interest of Gian Piero Gasperini, Atalanta manager.
Transferring to La Dea following their historic success in the Europa League, Retegui notched 28 goals across the recent campaign, with Italian manager Luciano Spalletti saying, “Inside the box, he is lethal.”
That’s exactly what the Red Devils need going forward, and while Sesko promises much under Amorim’s management, it’s clear he is a work in progress, and that a period of adaptation might spill over into the following season.
Retegui would be the perfect player, at a different stage in his career development, to jockey for a place at the front of the ship and ensure United go from strength to strength next season and beyond.
With five goals and four assists from his past four matches for Gli Azzurri during World Cup qualifying, Retegui is proving he has retained the requisite sharpness to succeed in the Premier League for a superpower such as Man United.
If we’ve learned anything about Man United’s goalscoring conundrum over the past year or so, it’s that strikers need service. Hojlund has come alive since leaving England, and United’s 14th-placed ranking for big chances created last season (66) emphasises the root of their creative struggles then.
But things have changed this term. Tactical imbalances still reign, but Sesko is benefiting from Bruno Fernandes’ creativity; no Premier League player has created more big chances than his 18 this season.
Just imagine the gains that could be made with Retegui thrown into the mix. According to Sofascore, Retegui only missed 18 big chances in Serie A last season, scoring 25 times, which emphasises his clinical quality in the danger area. The Italian averaged more than a chance created per game besides.
For all that is lopsided about Amorim’s system and the application of the players within it, United actually top the xG (expected goals) chart in the top flight so far.
Expected Goals (xG) is a metric designed to measure the probability of a shot resulting in a goal.
Retegui has proven over the past few years his goalscoring ability and aptitude across the final third. For Atalanta, he was “one of the best acquisitions of the summer transfer window” in 2024, after all.
Kylian Mbappe
34
31
Mohamed Salah
38
29
Robert Lewandowski
34
27
Harry Kane
31
26
Mateo Retegui
36
25
He no longer competes on the European circuit, but the Italian has started life in the Gulf as clinically as he left his career in his homeland, posting three goals from four matches across the Saudi Pro League campaign so far.
Given that, across the past 12 months, he ranks among the top 5% of strikers for goals scored, the top 7% for assists and the top 11% for recoveries completed per 90, as per FBref’s data, there’s a sense that this mobile and aggressive goalscorer could be the perfect counterpoint to the tall and powerful Sesko.
But if Retegui were to hit the ground running, it might actually be to the detriment of Sesko’s own rise in the Premier League.