Michael Carrick has just forced Tim Sherwood to eat humble pie over £74m Man Utd star | OneFootball

Manchester United manager Michael Carrick has explained why he has not started Benjamin Sesko yet this season, as pundits Paul Scholes and Tim Sherwood are made to eat humble pie over their opinion on the issue.

Sesko has made three substitute appearances in the Premier League for Man Utd this season.

The Slovenia international striker, who cost Man Utd £73.7million when they signed him from RB Leipzig in the summer of 2025, has scored one goal in those games.

Sesko did not start against Everton at the Hill Dickinson Stadium last weekend, with Carrick deciding to deploy Matheus Cunha as his number nine.

The 23-year-old striker replaced Cunha after 70 minutes and scored in the 88th minute, as the Premier League game between Everton and Man Utd ended in a 2-2 draw.

Paul Scholes and Tim Sherwood raise Benjamin Sesko doubts

After the match, Man Utd legend Paul Scholes questioned why Cunha started as the number nine instead of Sesko.

Scholes said on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast: “I felt it was really timid against Everton.

“There was no aggression, and Everton were there for the taking.

“There was so much space, and they never went for the throat.

“The centre-forward position is a bit of an issue because he is not playing Sesko.

“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 no10 or a wide player but he’s definitely not a no9 and watching United without a no9 is a struggle.”

Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Tim Sherwood said that Carrick does not trust Sesko.

Sherwood said: “Where do you find that striker?

“Everyone is looking for it; Arsenal are looking for it.

“Sesko isn’t the answer because no one wants to play him.

“He comes on, he’s done alright, he’s come on and scored a few goals off the bench.

“But if he was top drawer, do you think Michael Carrick would be playing him?

“Of course he would.

“He wouldn’t be wanting to play someone else [Mateus Cunha] out of position.”

Man Utd are back in action on Thursday evening when they take on Sabah at Old Trafford in the Champions League.

Michael Carrick responds to Benjamin Sesko question

In his pre-match press conference on Wednesday, Man Utd manager Carrick said that the reason why Sesko has not been starting is that he wants to make sure that the striker is fully ready to do so.

Sesko suffered a shin injury against Liverpool towards the end of the 2025/26 campaign and did not feature at all for Man Utd in pre-season.

Carrick said about Sesko, as quoted on Man Utd’s official website: “Yeah, Ben’s close.

“He’s obviously getting closer and closer.

“He missed a lot, you know. It was the end of April, really, [and] Liverpool, [his] last game [of the season, in May].

“It was a long time for him to miss and we had to manage him and look after him, get him fit and he’s probably trained three-and-a-bit weeks fully, non-restriction.

“And I think you can see that, coming onto the pitch and getting his rhythm and it was a fantastic goal.

“He did an awful lot for us last season, it was nice to see him get on the end of that cross.

“So, he’s in a good place, Ben.

“Yeah, he’ll be part of each and every game, you know, and it’s just a case of when he takes that next step.