Michael Carrick said he has been impressed by Manchester United striker Benjamin Sesko in training since taking on as interim head coach.
Sesko scored three goals in two games under caretaker boss Darren Fletcher, but was an unused substitute in Carrick’s first game against Manchester City last weekend.
In his place, Bryan Mbeumo led the road after his return from the AFCON, producing a clinical finish on the counterattack to attain United’s opening goal.
Sesko has endured a hit-and-miss begin to life at Old Trafford since arriving for £74million from RB Leipzig in the summertime.
The 22-year-old has scored five goals in 19 appearances in all competitions, but Carrick insisted the striker has made an excellent first impression on him despite not featuring last weekend.
‘He’s in an excellent place, he’s trained very well,’ Carrick said in his pre-match press conference ahead of Sunday’s trip to face league leaders Arsenal.
‘Obviously, we’re working with him to maintain attempting to improve him as much as possible, but I’ve been really impressed in the best way he’s trained and his ending and the best way he’s gone about it.
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‘I don’t see it as anything aside from pushing on and using what he’s done during the last month as a stepping stone to be here and successful for a very long time.’
The return of Amad Diallo and Mbeumo from AFCON has given the Red Devils a much-needed boost with regards to their options in attacking areas.
And Carrick says the range of options he has in central forward positions will only profit his side in the approaching weeks and months.
‘It’s just variety by way of the strengths in some ways,’ he said when asked in regards to the difference between his current crop of attackers.
‘Bryan [Mbeumo] had a little bit of a free role [against Manchester City] in some ways in a partnership with Bruno [Fernandes] to drift and fill different spaces.
‘Ben [Sesko] is excellent at playing on the last line, we’ve seen over recently weeks he’s in an excellent place.
‘Josh [Zirkzee] can do a little bit of each, flicks and tricks and playing in the outlet. It’s different styles, great to have that flexibility. Matheus [Cunha] got here on through the center and made a difference for us.’
United head into Sunday’s testing encounter only one point off Liverpool in fourth and unbeaten of their last five league games.
Carrick said his squad don’t have any recent fitness issues, but confirmed that Matthijs de Ligt had suffered a setback in his recovery from a back problem.
‘He had a little bit of setback,’ he explained. ‘Well, not likely a setback, before I arrived. [It was] only small but he was a bit of bit slower than we’d have liked.
‘He’s getting closer and hopefully in the subsequent couple of weeks he can be back and around it.’
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