Newcastle United started the season hot and cold, but hit a real green spot during the holiday period, winning ten games in a row in all competitions, taking them to Champions League places in Premier League table and semi-finals of the EFL Cup.
However, last weekend’s 4-1 defeat at Bournemouth, their first defeat since November, saw Eddie Howe’s side drop to sixth, alongside fifth-placed Manchester City and two points behind fourth-placed Chelsea.
With the Toon looking to return to the Champions League next season, the emphasis will be on keeping their best players at the club this January, while also looking to strengthen if possible, as the second half of the season looks set to determine the future of Alexander Isak.
Newcastle are weighing up a move for a big-money striker
According to reports The ChronicleNewcastle are ‘weighing up a bid’ to sign RB Leipzig forward Benjamin Sesko. It follows reports from Germany that suggest any suitors will have to pay a seismic fee, with the Magpies requiring a club-record transfer fee of around £67m.
The Slovenian striker is also on the radar of numerous top European clubs, with One Arsenal name says he wants to do a deal this month for Sesko.
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The 21-year-old was of interest to Newcastle in 2023, before moving from RB Salzburg to RB Leipzig, but since making the switch to the Bundesliga and further proving his quality, it has become even less likely that teams will land him from Germany for less than £80 million euro (£67 million) release clause.
Šeško has he has made 25 appearances in all competitions for the German team this seasonscoring 13 goals and three assists in 1768 minutes.
How is Šeško compared to Aleksander Isak
Isak, who is four years older than Šešek, has this season he made 24 appearances for the Magpiesscored 17 goals, registered five assists and played a total of 1932 minutes. So, rather unsurprisingly, he’s better than the Toon target.
However, they share similar traits and qualities that would make Sesko a good replacement if the Swede leaves for the North East in 2025.
Both are blessed with height, Isak is 6ft 4 and Seško 6ft 5, so the forwards have similarly tall but lean bodies, deceptively agile for their height.
However, the performance of the Swede is better in the domestic campaign so far.
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Benjamin Sesko against Alexander Isak in the 2024/25 season |
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|---|---|---|
|
Statistics (per 90 minutes) |
Šeško |
Isaac |
|
Objectives |
0.71 |
0.83 |
|
Assists |
0.12 |
0.24 |
|
xG |
0.40 |
0.70 |
|
xAG |
0.03 |
0.20 |
|
Progressive mounts |
1.75 |
2.82 |
|
Progressive passes |
1.58 |
2.71 |
|
Total shots |
2.89 |
3.61 |
|
Goals/Shoot |
0.21 |
0.23 |
|
Key passes |
0.51 |
1.82 |
|
Actions to create a shot |
1.58 |
3.70 |
|
Aerial duels won |
2.60 |
0.94 |
|
Statistics taken from FBref |
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Comparing Sesko and Isak with the metrics analyzed above, you can see that Isak is, of course, a more refined version of the Leipzig star, producing more impact, being in better scoring areas (generating a higher xG) and finishing at a higher level, with a shot/goal ratio 0.23 compared to Šeško’s 0.21.
In addition, Seško is marked as “extraordinary” striker by pundit Tony Cascarino, comparing his physical attributes to Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, but comparing his dribbling quality to Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs.
“He’s a big guy, powerful too, and he can dribble. For someone who’s 6ft 5, he’s an incredible runner with the ball. He’s been linked to being similar to Haaland, but if you watch him play, he dribbles like Ryan Giggs.”
This already shows the quality of the high striker. He is obviously physically gifted, but with the agility and dribbling of a winger, similar to Isak.
If the club’s top scorer leaves Newcastle at the end of the season, Sesko would be a great replacement. He is a young superstar and is capable of filling the shoes of the former Real Sociedad striker in the long term.
