Sesko Debate Intensifies as Scholes Critiques Carrick's Tactics

Benjamin Sesko has barely kicked a ball for Manchester United this season, yet his absence is already defining their campaign.

A shin injury wiped out his entire pre-season and has kept him out of Michael Carrick’s starting line-up. In the meantime, Carrick has turned to Matheus Cunha through the middle against Hull City, Ipswich Town and Everton, hoping the Brazilian could improvise as a No.9.

It hasn’t convinced.

United’s wide players, Bryan Mbuemo and Marcus Rashford, have started brightly, stretching defences and carrying a threat. But straight down the middle, where title-chasing sides are usually ruthless, United have lacked a cutting edge. Cunha, signed from Wolves last year and more at home off the left, has looked like exactly what he is: a makeshift solution.

The contrast was stark when Sesko finally reminded everyone what a real centre forward looks like.

Off the bench against Everton, he rose to meet a Luke Shaw cross and powered in a superb header. One chance, one goal, the kind of penalty-box moment United have been missing. Yet even that wasn’t enough. A late equaliser from Ainsley Maitland-Niles at the Hill Dickinson Stadium turned a much-needed win into a frustrating draw and left the wider issues exposed again.

Scholes: “Very difficult to watch a Manchester United team without a centre forward”

Those issues were laid bare by Paul Scholes.

Speaking on The Good, The Bad, and The Football, the former United midfielder did not bother with diplomacy. He tore into the performance at Everton and, more pointedly, into the tactical choices behind it.

“I felt it was really timid against Everton,” Scholes said. “There was no aggression and Everton were there for the taking. There was so much space and they never went for the throat.”

For Scholes, the problem starts with the team sheet.

“The centre forward position is a bit of an issue because he is not playing Sesko,” he continued. “He is a focal point. It is very difficult to watch a Manchester United team without a centre forward. With Cunha, we don’t really know what he is, a No.10 or a wide player but he’s definitely not a No.9 and watching United without a No.9 is a struggle.”

That last line will sting at Carrick. United’s identity, historically built on relentless attacking play and a dominant striker, now feels blurred. The numbers only add to the scrutiny.

Carrick under pressure as City loom

Three league games. One win, one draw, one defeat. Four points from a possible nine.

It’s not a crisis, but it is a stumble, and the timing could hardly be worse. Enzo Maresca’s Manchester City are next at Old Trafford, arriving with a perfect domestic record: three games, three wins, and the familiar air of a side already in stride.

United, by contrast, are still searching for their shape and their spearhead.

That’s why the Sesko question refuses to go away. Under Carrick last season, the Slovenian delivered a goal every 85 minutes – the kind of strike rate that changes tight games and settles title races. When a team looks blunt, a proven finisher becomes impossible to ignore.

Use him, and United gain a focal point, a reference for Shaw, Rashford and Mbuemo to play off. Leave him out again, and every missed chance, every aimless cross, will be framed as a managerial choice rather than bad luck.

European stage offers Sesko his opening

Before City, though, comes Europe.

Sabah FK visit Old Trafford on Thursday in the Champions League, a fixture that, on paper, offers Carrick some breathing space. In reality, it might be the most important 90 minutes of Sesko’s season so far.

This is the window: a home European tie against Azerbaijani opposition, the perfect setting to test his fitness, his sharpness, and his timing in the box. If Sesko starts and delivers, he doesn’t just score goals; he forces a decision.

Carrick can talk about conditioning and caution only for so long. A strong display on Thursday would give him something else: a fully armed No.9, in rhythm, with City on the horizon.

The derby is coming. United look short of a cutting edge. The answer is already in the building. The only question now is whether Carrick dares to build his team around him again.