Benjamin Šeško has been defended by Slovenia after Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt criticised the Manchester United striker for missing games with a shin injury. Sesko missed Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Fulham, and he has now withdrawn from Slovenia duty for the forthcoming Nations League fixtures.

Slovenia's defence of Sesko

Bostjan Cesar said the criticism comes with the territory when a player is at a club like Manchester United. "If you play for a club like this, it happens," he said, as Rooney, Scholes and Butt all piled in on the striker’s absence.

Cesar also made the injury point clearly enough. "It’s not easy for Benjamin. He's going through a tough period in his career, as he hasn't had injury problems until now. This is an unusual injury that takes time to heal. Right now, he needs to surround himself with people he trusts and believes in."

That lines up with the way Jan Oblak described the situation. "He transferred to a big club very quickly. He's under a lot of pressure. I know that in such clubs the pressure is always enormous. Especially when injuries come, it's very difficult."

Oblak added: "But you just have to believe in yourself, aim to heal and come back as soon as possible, and to show everyone, those who think otherwise, who think you can't do it, that they are wrong."

Sesko's stop-start season

The injury has left Sesko with only four Premier League appearances this season, and those have produced just 85 minutes. He has still scored once in the league.

The stop-start nature of the campaign has been obvious since he missed the final three games of last season and then all of United’s summer friendlies after being given extra time off to recover. He had made just two starts this term before the Fulham match.

United's form has not made the pressure any lighter. They sit 12th in the Premier League and have taken only one win from their last five league games, which leaves every selection call under a brighter light than it would at a calmer club.

Sesko will not feature for Slovenia in the forthcoming Nations League fixtures, but the public line from his international camp is clear. They want patience, and they want the injury treated as a recovery issue rather than a test of nerve.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →