Manchester United secured a last-gasp 2-2 draw against Tottenham Hotspur away from home last weekend despite playing the last 10 minutes with a man disadvantage.
It was the visitors who had taken the lead through Bryan Mbeumo but Spurs scored twice within quick succession, with Richarlison’s strike coming in added time.
With Benjamin Sesko forced off injured, and no subs left for the Red Devils, up stepped Matthijs de Ligt in the last minute of added time to secure an important point.
The Slovenian, who started on the bench, came on in the 58th minute and had two glorious chances to score United’s second. But he fluffed his lines on both occasions.
Poor cameo from Benjamin Sesko
It was a poor cameo and his day was made worse when he pulled up due to a knee injury. United’s medical team came onto the pitch and signalled the coaching staff that the 22-year-old was in no position to continue.
Fans feared the worst, but it came as a pleasant surprise to hear Amorim say during the post-match press conference that the ex-RB Leipzig ace’s injury was not too serious.
Then why could he not have soldiered on for another 10 minutes? It was because United were down to 10 men that the home side managed to find the back of the net a second time.
The Slovenian national team manager’s reaction during the international break also raised further questions regarding United’s call to take him off.
Centredevils have now claimed that the medical staff took the call to sub him off as a precautionary measure as if he would have played on, the chances of the United No.30 getting seriously injured would have drastically increased.
Substitution call
“There was also a huge amount of outrage from supporters, with some believing that the Slovenian came off the pitch due to embarrassment of his missed chance.
“Benjamin Sesko was made to come off by the medical staff and coaches during the Tottenham Hotspur clash, with the attacker deemed physically unfit to continue at that time.
“The club are insistent that this was the right decision for the Slovenian to leave the pitch, as if he carried on, he could’ve risked a further serious injury. Sesko has been assessed and monitored all week in Carrington, with the injury not being deemed as major.”
Hopefully, Benjamin Sesko is back fit for the games against Everton and Crystal Palace later this month. Or else, INEOS might need to dip into the January market for solutions.
Feature image Shaun Botterill via Getty Images