Benjamin Sesko Set to Don Iconic Jersey Number at Manchester United

Benjamin Šeško will reportedly receive his preferred No. 30 jersey at Manchester United this season following a generous gesture from one of his new colleagues.

Manchester United proudly confirmed Šeško's signing on Saturday after outbidding Newcastle United for the highly coveted forward. Manager Ruben Amorim expressed great admiration for his new €85 million (£73.5 million, $98.8 million) signing, while United's football director Jason Wilcox praised him as "among the most outstanding young prospects in global football".

Despite all the praise, United faced a jersey number dilemma for Šeško. Summer signing Diego León had already been assigned the No. 30 when he arrived from Cerro Porteño in July. The Paraguayan defender has now been moved to No. 35, clearing the path for Šeško to claim 30, according to Fabrizio Romano.

Šeško has sported the same digits since his professional debut with Red Bull Salzburg in 2021. Those distinctive numbers had previously belonged to none other than Erling Haaland. Rather than feeling pressured, it served as motivation.

"All the traditional numbers like 9, 11, 7 were already occupied by Salzburg's first team so I chose 30," Šeško revealed. "At that moment I thought, 'I want to wear Erling's number,' so that's essentially the only reason but now I've grown fond of it and it holds significance."

As a physically imposing forward who not only stands tall above opposing defenders but can easily outpace them, Šeško and Haaland naturally draw comparisons. "I don't really focus on comparisons," the younger player remarked.

"We are entirely different athletes. Erling is an exceptional world-class forward. I love watching his matches on television and certainly observe what he does in various game situations, but as I've mentioned: I am a completely different style of player."

History of Man Utd's No. 30 Shirt

In contrast to Salzburg, there isn't a distinguished history of celebrated players wearing the No. 30 jersey at United. Notably, several modest right-backs have worn this number at various times. Wes Brown and John O'Shea eventually earned their way to lower numbers, while players like Ritchie De Laet and Guillermo Varela never quite established themselves in the starting lineup.

The most recent player to wear the jersey—excluding León's short tenure—was reserve goalkeeper Nathan Bishop. The 25-year-old never had the opportunity to wear the number in a competitive senior match for United before transferring to Sunderland in 2023.