Premier League sides Manchester United and Newcastle have both placed competing bids for in-demand RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko, German tabloid Bild reported Tuesday.
The German tabloid said the Red Devils made an initial bid of 85 million euros (AU$152 million) on Tuesday for the 22-year-old centre forward.
Newcastle had offered a reported 80 million euros ($143 million) for the striker on Saturday, upping that to 85 million with bonuses on Monday.
The Slovenia striker scored 13 goals and laid on five assists in a disappointing league campaign for Leipzig last season. He has scored 16 times in 41 appearances at international level.
Sesko was stood down from Saturday’s home friendly against Serie A side Atalanta, won 2-1 by the visitors due to a potential transfer.
Leipzig sporting director Marcel Schaefer confirmed this, saying Sesko would not play “due to the very concrete interests from several clubs”.
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United are rebuilding after their worst top-flight campaign in 51 years, along with defeat to Tottenham in the Europa League final.
United were toothless in attack and have already brought in forwards Matheus Cunha and Bryan Mbeumo in the summer window.
Sesko’s arrival could push under-pressure striker Rasmus Hojlund towards the exit, with reports emerging United could sell the Denmark forward for 35 million euros ($62 million), less than half of what they paid to bring him from Atalanta in 2023.
Newcastle qualified for the Champions League with a fifth-placed finish last season but are reportedly in danger of losing striker Alexander Isak to Premier League champions Liverpool.
Sarr scores SCREAMER from near half-way | 00:25
GERMAN CLUB BACKS OUT OF SIGNING ISRAEL STRIKER
Bundesliga 2 side Fortuna Duesseldorf has pulled out of signing Israel striker Shon Weissman in response to fan anger about his social media posts on the Gaza war, German tabloid Bild reported Tuesday.
Fan furore erupted online on Monday when news emerged Weissman was on the cusp of joining Duesseldorf from Spanish side Granada FC.
On Tuesday, the club tweeted: “We looked into Shon Weissman intensively, but ultimately decided not to sign him”.
The club did not reveal the reasons for the decision, but Bild reported the club reacted to fan anger about social media statements from Weissman, who was already in Duesseldorf and had completed a medical.
The centre-forward, who has 33 Israel caps, made several social media posts after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel that set off the Gaza war.
Bild reported Weissman called for Israel to “wipe Gaza off the map” and to “drop 200 tons of bombs on it”.
The 29-year-old had also liked posts saying “there are no innocents (in Gaza), they don’t need to be warned”.
Weissman, who deleted the posts soon after making them, has since said he made a mistake and was acting in the heat of the moment.
Duesseldorf fans launched an online petition on Monday saying Weissman’s “disrespectful and discriminatory” comments “are in stark contrast to the principles Fortuna stand for and try to promote”.
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