Benjamin Sesko's agent moves to 'clarify a few things' amid Arsenal 'agreement'
Benjamin Sesko's agent Elvis Basanovic has denied putting any pressure on RB Leipzig to lower their asking price for the striker. Sesko is understood to have agreed personal terms with Premier League side Arsenal, but the Gunners still have work to do.
Leipzig are prepared to sell Sesko after missing out on Champions League qualification, but only if they receive a hefty fee - thought to be north of £60million. Basanovic believes all will become clear in due course, but moved to "clarify" the situation and insisted he wouldn't push for a lower fee out of respect for the Bundesliga side.
'This is far from truth!" he told Givemesport when asked about rumours of leaning on Leipzig over their asking price "We respect RB Leipzig and I am 100% convinced RB Leipzig will also respect our decision for the next step when we decide to do it."
He addedL "Even if there may be - or will be - a strong desire of the player to move to a certain club, we will never force or blackmail RB Leipzig. I believe this is not the right way, because the way you actually exit from the club shows your values. Values that you are bringing into a new club.
"I can understand in very big transfers, there are a lot of different interests but no matter what, I believe in football world should be more respect. So that's why we do things in the right way or we don't do them. It's very simple, even maybe in the media it looks very complicated."
Sesko scored 21 goals in all competitions for Leipzig last season, with 13 of those coming in the Bundesliga. That was enough for him to finish the season as his team's top scorer, but a late-season collapse saw their European hopes go up in smoke.
With five games to go, Leipzig sat in the fourth and final Champions League qualification place. They won none of those last five, though, and that saw them miss out on European qualification altogether.
Sesko was linked with an Arsenal switch in the summer of 2024 as well, only to instead sign a new contract at his current club. That deal runs until 2029, though he could yet leave sooner.
"We have a team with great potential and a balanced mix of young and experienced players. I'm really looking forward to taking the next steps with this team," Sesko said when his extension was confirmed.
"We've already achieved a lot in my first season and often shown the amount of quality and outstanding football we can bring to the pitch. But there's still a lot more to be done and that's now our common goal."
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Herald Scotland
34 minutes ago
- The Herald Scotland
Darren Fletcher lands 'exciting' new Man United role
Fletcher, who spent more than 20 years at the club as a player, has held numerous roles at United in recent years. Former Manchester United midfielder Darren Fletcher has been named as the lead coach of the club's under-18s side. He was appointed technical director in March 2021 before joining then-manager Erik ten Hag's coaching staff after the arrival of Jason Wilcox last year, continuing to work with the first team under Ruben Amorim. The former Scotland international has recently been working as a bridge between the academy and the first team, but will now focus full-time on the development of United's next generation. 'I am really excited to take on this new role and increase my responsibility to directly develop our young players,' the 41-year-old said. 'I'm looking forward to working with such a talented age group; supporting them to reach their potential and preparing them to enjoy careers at the highest level possible.' Read more: Fletcher came through the United Academy himself before going on to make more than 340 appearances for the club, winning five Premier League titles, the Champions League, the FA Cup, Club World Cup and two League Cups. His twin sons Tyler and Jack recently graduated from United's under-18s to the under-21 set-up. Director of football Wilcox said Fletcher was the ideal man for the under-18s role. 'He knows exactly what it takes to be a successful Academy graduate and has played a key role in shaping the pathway for so many of our young players in recent years,' Wilcox said. 'Darren's excellent relationships across the entire staff will only increase the strong connection between the Academy and first team, further enhancing our ability to produce world-class players ready to excel at Manchester United.' Fletcher replaces Adam Lawrence, who left the club at the end of last season as part of a wider shake-up at youth level following the exit of Academy boss Nick Cox, who has joined Everton. Fletcher has started in his new role with immediate effect, taking charge of a training camp in Germany and a friendly against QPR at Carrington.
Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Daily Mirror
Darren Fletcher takes fifth Man Utd role after surviving Ruben Amorim revolution
Darren Fletcher has been a consistent figure in the backroom staff at Manchester United in recent years, and he's now been announced in yet another new role Manchester United legend Darren Fletcher is the new coach of the club's Under-18s side, his fifth different title at the club. Scotland international Fletcher played 340 times for United after graduating from the club's academy, and picked up five Premier League titles and the 2008 Champions League under the tutelage of United icon and fellow Scot Sir Alex Ferguson. Fletcher is now trying to follow in Ferguson's footsteps by guiding United's young players, and he's determined to help as many of them advance towards Ruben Amorim's first-team as possible. 'I am really excited to take on this new role and increase my responsibility to directly develop our young players," said Fletcher. "I'm looking forward to working with such a talented age-group; supporting them to reach their potential and preparing them to enjoy careers at the highest level possible.' READ MORE: Man Utd to agree deal with wonderkid who impressed Ruben Amorim in first training session United's director of football Jason Wilcox added: 'We are delighted that Darren will lead our Under-18s group. He knows exactly what it takes to be a successful Academy graduate and has played a key role in shaping the pathway for so many of our young players in recent years. 'Darren's excellent relationships across the entire staff will only increase the strong connection between the Academy and first team, further enhancing our ability to produce world-class players ready to excel at Manchester United.' The appointment comes after Fletcher survived Amorim's overhaul when he was appointed as United's first-team manager in November last year. Amorim brought in several of his own coaches to fulfil roles with the senior team, and as a result he dismissed United interim boss Ruud van Nistelrooy, who had been serving as assistant to Erik ten Hag and took over the reins when Ten Hag was sacked. A hugely popular figure with fans, there was initially some disquiet among supporters about Van Nistelrooy being dismissed from the club while Fletcher - who has undertaken a variety of roles at United since the end of his playing days - stayed on. Van Nistelrooy moved on to Leicester City as the club's head coach, but he oversaw their relegation from the Premier League before being sacked last week. After playing, Fletcher first returned to United in October 2020 as under-16s coach, before further roles as first-team coach and technical director. Join our new MAN UTD WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Manchester United content from Mirror Football. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
Scotsman
an hour ago
- Scotsman
Former Hibs boss lands key Newcastle United role amid 'outstanding progress'
The former Hibs and Sunderland man has been put in charge of building key factors at Newcastle United. Sign up to our Hibs football newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... A former Hibs and Sunderland boss has been handed new tasks at Newcastle United after taking on a new role with the Premier League side. Since leaving a spell in the dugout at Dundee United, Jack Ross has worked behind the scenes at Newcastle United in a fruitful period which has include a Carabao Cup success plus Champions League football. It has now been confirmed he has been promoted to head of football strategy and will report into the club's new sporting director. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad After retiring, Ross managed Alloa Athletic, St Mirren and then Newcastle United's fierce rivals Sunderland before a spell at Hibs. He guided the club to a third place finish in the 20/21 season and was sacked before getting the chance to lead Hibs out into a Premier Sports Cup final against Celtic. Jack Ross' key roles at Newcastle United He said of his promotion at Newcastle: 'I am delighted to move to the role of Head of Football Strategy. This is an exciting opportunity to help the club build on the outstanding progress and successes it has achieved on and off the pitch in recent seasons. "We have incredibly high calibre staff here across multiple pillars of the club, and I am looking forward to supporting them in this new position." A club statement reads: 'Newcastle United have appointed Jack Ross as the club's Head of Football Strategy. Reporting into a new Sporting Director, Jack will take on an important leadership role that will help to develop a consistent sporting philosophy across the club. He will work within the Football Directorate alongside senior leadership across all sites, supporting communication, collaboration and the implementation of best practice across men's, women's and Academy football. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Jack Ross Hibs sacking admission 'Having previously overseen almost 300 professional matches as a manager, Jack initially joined Newcastle United's Academy's as Head of Coach Development in March 2023 before moving to the position of Head of Strategic Technical Football Partnerships. He has continued to provide mentorship and strategic support to key staff. 'In addition to overseeing the club's player loan and emerging talent strategy, Jack will also lead on building strategic relationships with other clubs, introducing new football development and talent pathway opportunities in the UK and overseas. The establishment of this model is aimed at enabling talent depth and retention, as well as supporting the development of Newcastle United's global brand and IP.' Current Hibs chairman and then executive director Ian Gordon admits sacking Ross was an error the club learned from. He said in 2024: 'I think as my dad said, that was a mistake and I view it the same way. I think at that time it was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction and lessons have been learned from then and along the way since then. "It is hard to build something when you're constantly changing. That has been a massive problem for us. I think it's easy to look back and wish we did things differently. I know it's tough for fans to realise that, but there have been massive lessons learned throughout that time. I think we could always wise up a bit earlier. I'm not hiding from the fact we haven't got it correct along the way but we do feel through the ups and downs over the last few years that we're in a good position now with the structure in place."
