Benjamin Sesko set to miss rest of 2026 as Manchester United take no risks with shin injury
Benjamin Sesko is expected to be sidelined until at least January, with Manchester United determined that the striker returns from his shin injury only when he is fully healed.
The club's medical staff have been consulting specialists on the best treatment, and the 23-year-old now needs more time. Sesko is reported to be recovering well through rest, but his road back is set to stretch into the New Year, before he then has to rebuild match sharpness.
A problem that never fully went away
The Slovenia international has not played since September 16, when he started the Carabao Cup defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion. A week later, United said: "Benjamin will undergo tests this week before defining his individual recovery plan."
The setback is linked to a kick to the shin he took last season. Sesko played on through the final two months of the campaign as United chased Champions League qualification, until he was forced off against Liverpool after being pushed to the ground by Ibrahim Konate. He had scored earlier in that game to make it 2-0, but the collision aggravated the injury and he missed the last three matches.
United opted for rest over surgery, which ruled him out of pre-season. Sesko pushed to be back in August and came off the bench in the opening game at Hull City, but the problem has now flared again in a similar area of his leg. The Athletic stresses it is not a chronic issue, and that all parties want to minimise any chance of another setback.
A blow for Carrick
The injury record is a sharp break from Sesko's past. Sesko has already missed 154 days of football since signing for Manchester United, more than double his absences across six previous seasons, the worst of which was 61 days over three muscle problems at Red Bull Salzburg in 2021/22.
His absence leaves Michael Carrick without the physical penalty-box presence the rest of his attack lacks. Sesko scored 12 goals last season despite only 17 starts, eight of his 12 Premier League goals coming after Carrick took charge in January, five of them as a substitute. He has two goals in six games this campaign.
