Chelsea could be signing RB Leipzig’s Benjamin Sesko who shares playing traits with former Chelsea legend Didier Drogba. The Blues finished 6th in the Premier League securing a UEFA Europa League spot. However, Manchester United’s triumph over City in the FA Cup final pushed Chelsea to the Europa Conference League.
Chelsea decided to mutually part ways with Mauricio Pochettino after inconsistent performances throughout the season. The Blues signed Enzo Maresca on a five-year deal. Maresca was recently the manager of Leicester City.
Additionally, Maresca helped the Foxes win the EFL Championship, garnering 97 points, and win automatic promotion for the Premier League next season.
Benjamin Sesko: The missing piece of puzzle at Chelsea?
Todd Boehly and the Blues are looking to strengthen the squad all over the pitch. While the addition of Cole Palmer from Manchester City was an excellent move, Chelsea have missed a prolific striker up front. Nicolas Jackson hasn’t been clinical enough while Christopher Nkunku has had fitness issues.
Chelsea are considering to trigger the 20-year old Slovenian’s £60 million release clause from RB Leipzig. The Blues have until the end of June to make their move, provided any other club don’t cash in on the striker.
The Slovenian began his senior player career as a 16-year old at RB Salzburg. Immediately after signing for Salzburg, Sesko was loaned out by FC Liefering, a reserve team of Salzburg in 2nd tier Austrian football. The striker played for Liefering until 2021 scoring 22 goals in 44 appearances. Sesko would go on to play for Salzburg until 2023 scoring 29 goals in 79 appearances.
RB Leipzig bought Sesko from Salzburg for €24 million in 2023. Sesko has 20 G/A having netted 18 times in 42 appearances for RB Leipzig over the course of this campaign. Moreover, the Slovenian has 11 goals in 28 caps for his national team.
The forward has won Austrian Bundesliga in three consecutive years from 2020 with RB Salzburg. Additionally, he also won the Austrian Cup in 2022. The 20-year old also clinched the DFL Supercup with Leipzig in 2023. Moreover, Sesko has been named as the Slovenian Youth Footballer of the Year in three years back-to-back from 2021 and he was also honored as the Slovenian Footballer of the Year in 2022.
Could the Slovenian be Chelsea’s new Didier Drogba?
Sesko is a physically strong player much like the Ivorian international. Moreover, the Slovenian is taller than Drogba. Drogba was extremely good in the air for the Blues. Likewise, Sesko has a name for being an aerial threat as a forward.
The Slovenian has scored five headers and had a 57% win percentage in aerial duels in the Bundesliga this season. However, Sesko is a long way from being a consistent goal scorer like the incredible Ivorian was!
While Sesko does have the potential, he will have to scale up his game to be recognized at the Bridge.
Why Sesko for Chelsea?
Sesko’s figures at Leipzig speak for themselves. Especially, since the Slovenian wasn’t even a starter in the first half of the season. In fact, Sesko started merely 17 of his 31 appearances this campaign.
However, the Slovenian was still able to outperform Chelsea’s current striker, Jackson. While Jackson possesses incredible pace, his finishing abilities have rather been questionable. The striker had a mere 18% goal conversion rate.
Additionally, Jackson also has a 18 goal record in the league. But, unlike the Slovenian, Jackson was handed 31 starts by Pochettino.
Benjamin Sesko could be the missing puzzle piece for Chelsea up-front. Not just a prolific goal-getter, Sesko is still young and will have his best years ahead. The Blues will be looking to make the most of the opportunity and go for the Slovenian.
For more sports updates, follow us on Twitter.
As featured on ChelseaNews.comFor more sports updates, make sure to follow us on:
