Football General Manager
- Bayern have agreement in place with Woltemade
- United and Newcastle interested in signing forward
- Premier League clubs hit roadblock in Sesko transfer
The Red Devils and the Magpies are desperately in need of a striker after most of their targets were hijacked by other clubs. According to The Sun the English clubs are now monitoring Woltemade from Stuttgart as they face stiff competition in their attempts to sign RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko. The young German striker rose to prominence last season after an impressive spell with Stuttgart and the Germany U21 team.
Both English clubs have their own issues to sort out. On one hand, Sesko would be willing to choose United, but the wages are a concern. Newcastle, on the other hand, are waiting to generate funds from the sale of Alexander Isak to Liverpool, but the deal is taking time considering the high transfer fees involved. Amid all this, there is now an open chance to sign Woltemade, who may have been left behind by Bayern even after progressive talks, as they chose to sign Luis Diaz to address their winger issues.
Sesko is the priority signing for both United and the Magpies. The German club have revised their asking fee and are now willing to part ways with the striker for €75 million (£65m/$86m) plus add-ons. However, it remains to be seen whether United will launch a formal bid for the striker or if the departure of Isak will allow the 2024-25 League Cup winners to finance their move.
Woltemade’s priority move reportedly is also to sign for Bayern but should there be no more attempts to sign the German striker from any club, he is not desperate to leave Stuttgart. The Stuttgart sporting department have decided a deadline but will not budge on their €65m (£56m/$74m) asking price. Woltemade scored 17 goals across all competitions last season and his contract runs until 2028.
It’s a game of waiting for both clubs, as many of their players are yet to depart. Alejandro Garnacho and Jadon Sancho are two players United are also looking to offload to adhere to rofit and sustainability rules, which would give them more freedom to bid for Sesko. Meanwhile, Isak’s preferred destination is reportedly Anfield, but that too will take time as the Premier League champions have already signed Hugo Ekitike and will have to ponder how to manage the record books should they manage to land the Swedish striker.
Additional reporting by Tim Ursinus.
