The government is seeking to appeal against the High Court’s refusal to allow it to intervene in the case of a hotel used to house asylum seekers in Epping.
Earlier this week, Epping Forest District Council was granted a temporary injunction to stop people being placed at the Bell Hotel.
The court refused a last-minute effort from Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to get the council’s case dismissed.
If successful in its new bid to be involved,the government is then expected to consider a further appeal against the ruling itself.
Home Office Minister Dan Jarvis said the government was committed to closing all asylum hotels, but added “we need to do that in a managed and ordered way”.
“And that’s why we’ll appeal this decision,” he said.
A senior Home Office source said it was a matter of “democracy” and that the judiciary should not be able to tell the government where it can and can’t place asylum seekers.
In recent weeks, thousands of people have gathered near the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex to protest after an asylum seeker living there was charged with sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in the town.
Bringing its case, Epping Council argued that the presence of the hotel “poses a clear risk of further escalating community tensions already at a high, and the risk of irreparable harm to the local community”.
Before the judgement was handed down, the Home Office asked to intervene in the case, warning that the court’s decision could “substantially impact” its ability to house asylum seekers in hotels across the UK.
The court ruled in favour of Epping Council and said the 140 asylum seekers would have to leave the hotel by 16:00 BST on 12 September.
Since the ruling, more than half a dozen councils have said they were considering taking similar legal action.
Protests and counter-protests are expected to take place outside hotels across the country over the coming days.
Brooke Hogan reiterated Wednesday that she has lingering questions about the circumstances surrounding her father Hulk Hogan’s death earlier this month.
In a series of Instagram Story posts, she said she has shared information with her brother, Nick Hogan, who she described as “boots on the ground with everything.”
She said professionals — from police officials to nurses who said they were present the day her father died — urged her to seek out body camera footage and 911 recordings, suggesting they might “contain information that could potentially shed enough light to change the narrative.”
“Those same professionals feel so passionately about what they witnessed, they have continued to contact me and push me to find specific answers to this very day,” Brooke Hogan wrote, adding that she doesn’t know whether those accounts were ever relayed to the medical examiner’s office.
A statement from Brooke Hogan regarding the circumstances of her dad Hulk Hogan’s death. (Brooke Hogan/Instagram)
A statement from Brooke Hogan regarding the circumstances of her dad Hulk Hogan’s death. (Brooke Hogan/Instagram)
A statement from Brooke Hogan regarding the circumstances of her dad Hulk Hogan’s death. (Brooke Hogan/Instagram)
A statement from Brooke Hogan regarding the circumstances of her dad Hulk Hogan’s death. (Brooke Hogan/Instagram)
A statement from Brooke Hogan regarding the circumstances of her dad Hulk Hogan’s death. (Brooke Hogan/Instagram)
The wrestling star’s daughter also questioned why bodycam and 911 records are “on lockdown” and raised doubts about Hogan’s primary doctor certifying his cause of death. Still, she acknowledged she has “zero control” over the situation, stressing that decisions are in the hands of her late dad’s wife, Sky Daily.
Hulk Hogan, whose real name is Terry Bollea, died July 24 at the age of 71, according to a medical examiner’s report. An acute myocardial infarction (better known as a heart attack) caused his death, a consequence of atrial fibrillation and chronic lymphocytic leukemia, a kind of slow-moving cancer.
Brooke Hogan has disputed the leukemia diagnosis, telling E! Magazine, “They’re saying, ‘Oh, he had leukemia.’ And I saw his blood work every time. One doctor, I quote, said his blood is like a 25-year-old’s.”
Later in the interview, she said that “we don’t have cancer that runs in our family. It just seems weird.”
Brooke Hogan did not attend the funeral, instead opting to celebrate her father at the beach with her twins and husband.
She had reportedly asked not to be included in her father’s will two years ago after the two became estranged. She shared on Instagram that their rift wasn’t because of a “big fight” but “a series of private phone calls no one will ever hear, know or understand.”
Hulk Hogan is survived by his wife, Sky Daily, daughter Brooke, son Nick and ex-wife Linda Claridge.
Millions of people are expected at Notting Hill Carnival which runs from Saturday to Monday
One hundred people have been arrested and dozens of weapons seized ahead of this weekend’s Notting Hill Carnival, the Metropolitan Police has said.
The arrests, which led to 21 people being recalled to prison, are “intended to disrupt and deter those who the police have reason to believe pose the greatest risk to public safety at carnival”, Scotland Yard said.
As part of the operation, officers seized 11 firearms and more than 40 knives with 266 people being given police bail or probation licence conditions not to come to carnival this year.
Cmdr Charmain Brenyah said the arrests would act as “a significant deterrent” for those wanting to “engage in violence and other criminality”.
Millions of people are expected at Europe’s largest street party which runs from Saturday to Monday.
Cmdr Brenyah said: “The vast majority come to have fun and enjoy themselves, to celebrate Caribbean culture, to dance, to eat and to go home with nothing but good memories.
“Regrettably we know a minority come with less positive intentions and in recent years this has played out in the form of serious violence including three tragic incidents where lives have been taken.”
She added: “Our policing plan makes tackling serious violence a priority which is why we’ve carried out intelligence-led interventions against those groups and individuals who we have reason to believe pose the greatest risk to the safety of other carnival-goers.”
Getty Images
Live Facial Recognition (LFR) will be used on the approach to and from the carnival as well as outside the boundaries of the event
Even before the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the pro-life movement was already taking heat for attempting to revive mail-order abortion rules within the Comstock Act — provisions that, if enforced, would immediately prohibit the mailing or shipping of abortion drugs on a national scale.
Modern legal debate over its enforcement has left these rules subject to serious neglect. Congress never repealed these provisions — and in fact, expanded the law in 1996 to include abortifacient matter sent through the internet. But Roe led to the law’s disuse.
Political adversaries of the law have attempted to use the principle of desuetude or disuse to prevent the resurrection of Comstock enforcement, arguing that the prolonged non-enforcement of the law renders the law permanently unenforceable. But this doctrine has been largely rejected by American legal scholars and would fundamentally undermine congressional authority. Furthermore, the recency of Roe’s reversal has only just made the enforcement of Comstock relevant, negating the argument in favor of desuetude.
Other arguments against the law’s enforcement have focused on the “lawfulness” of abortion. The Biden-era Department of Justice issued a memorandum opinion in 2022 stating that the Comstock Act “does not prohibit the mailing, or the delivery or receipt by mail, of [abortion drugs] where the sender lacks the intent that the recipient of the drugs will use them unlawfully.”
This argument is most fundamentally flawed in a plain language reading of the act, since the terminology of “unlawful” is never used within the statute. Even if lawfulness were directly referenced within the text, online distributors of chemical abortive drugs have no way of knowing their drugs are being used lawfully. They cannot ensure that the patient information provided to them is attributable to an actual person, much less a woman with a verified uterine pregnancy less than ten weeks gestation. And women continue to come forward as victims of abortion pill abuse — certainly an “unlawful” use.
Moreover, enforcement of the Comstock Act under the construction of “unlawful” use language would still prohibit the mailing of chemical abortive drugs into states that have anti-abortion pill trafficking statutes. Abortion shield laws would be put to the test — and likely overturned — so states like Louisiana and Texas, which have been attempting to prosecute out-of-state abortion providers for mailing drugs into their state, would then be allowed to enforce their protections for women.
Jerry Rodriguez, a grieving father in Texas who is suing a California doctor for mailing his girlfriend abortion pills, would be able to get justice for his loss. Rodriguez is citing the Comstock Act in his claim, testing the framework of this revived law. Although California has an abortion shield law, Comstock supersedes state law as a federal statute.
In the midst of what is certain to be a drawn out and exhausting legal battle for Rodriguez, the Trump administration, as the executive enforcers of the federal government, must take a stand and enforce the Comstock Act.
Members of the administration have historically supported reviving the Comstock Act to prohibit the mailing of chemical abortive drugs. Shortly after the Justice Department issued its memorandum opinion on Comstock, then-Senator JD Vance (R-Ohio) signed on to a letter to then-Attorney General Merrick Garland, alongside forty other U.S. senators, calling out the department for “abdicat[ing] its constitutional responsibility to enforce the law” and supporting the enforcement of the Comstock provisions.
Now, as Vice President, Vance has the opportunity and influence not only to side with Comstock advocates, but to uphold the duties of the executive branch to enforce the law without prejudice and not politically abdicate responsibility in the footsteps of the preceding Biden-Harris administration.
This responsibility must be upheld, despite Trump previously going on record on the campaign trail that “the federal government should have nothing to do with this issue.” Inaction on the part of the executive branch to enforce Comstock undermines the Constitution, signaling to Congress their enumerated powers under the Postal Clause and Commerce Clause are null and void. The mere refusal to enforce the law directly upholds the federal bias toward the distribution of these drugs, whether or not Trump wants to acknowledge it.
Enforcement of the Comstock Act isn’t political — it merely upholds the legal structures on which our national republic was founded. It is about ending the cycles of coercion and abuse against vulnerable women and recognizing the loss by fathers like Rodriguez.
Political parties should not hold captive the enforcement of federal law by their own agendas, whether Democrat or Republican. As leaders in enforcing the law and order of our nation, the Trump Administration must put its weight behind the total enforcement of Comstock.
Gavin Oxley is the Media Relations Manager for Americans United for Life.
SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) is one of the deep value stocks to buy according to analysts. On July 31, TD Cowen analyst David Deckelbaum reaffirmed a Buy rating on SM Energy and set a $42 price target. He pointed to the company’s strong second-quarter results, where production reached record levels and came in about 5% ahead of expectations, helped by solid well performance in the Uinta and Austin Chalk regions.
SM Energy’s (SM) Solid Cash Flow and Balance Sheet Drive Analyst Optimism
Pixabay/Public Domain Lower cash costs provided an additional boost, offsetting softer pricing and driving a sharp financial beat, including free cash flow that was substantially above consensus. Deckelbaum also noted that SM Energy reduced debt by roughly $140 million during the quarter, reinforcing balance sheet strength. Looking ahead, management raised its oil production forecast while maintaining stable guidance for the rest of the year. These operational and financial improvements support the analyst’s positive stance on the stock. SM Energy Company (NYSE:SM) is an independent oil and gas producer focused on acquiring, developing, and operating crude oil, natural gas, and NGL assets, primarily in Texas and Utah. While we acknowledge the potential of SM as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you’re looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 10 Best Large Cap Tech Stocks to Buy Now and 10 Best Big Tech Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
India’s Supreme Court has modified its previous order asking authorities in Delhi and its suburbs to move all stray dogs into shelters amid widespread protests by animal welfare groups.
The three-judge bench said that strays should be released after being vaccinated and sterilised but added that dogs with rabies or aggressive behaviour should be immunised and kept in shelters.
The court also banned feeding of stray dogs in public spaces and ordered dedicated areas to be set up for the purpose.
On 11 August, a two-judge bench had expressed concern over the rising “menace of dog bites leading to rabies” in Delhi and its suburbs.
Delhi’s stray dog population is estimated at one million, with suburban Noida, Ghaziabad and Gurugram also seeing a rise, municipal sources say.
India has millions of stray dogs and the country accounts for 36% of the total rabies-related deaths in the world, according to the World Health Organization.
It ordered authorities to build shelters to house these dogs in eight weeks’ time.
The order went against existing rules that state that stray dogs should be released to their original site after being sterilised at shelters, sparking strong protests and legal challenges from several animal welfare groups.
They called for more humane solutions like vaccination and neutering and warned that putting all strays in shelters would lead to problems like overcrowding and culling.
Following the backlash, the Supreme Court set up a three-judge bench to hear the challenge.
In Friday’s ruling, the court stayed the earlier order to round up all strays, stating that non-aggressive, non-infected dogs could be released to their capture site after being vaccinated and neutered.
The court also said that animal lovers could apply to municipal corporations to adopt strays but that these dogs were not to be returned to the street.
The court added that action would be taken against people found to be feeding stray dogs in public areas and warned animal welfare groups against interfering with its orders.
The Supreme Court has also said that it would formulate a national policy around stray dogs after hearing similar cases pending in different states.
The ruling has been welcomed by animal welfare groups.
Alokparna Sengupta, director of Humane World for Animals India, said it was “balanced, structured and compassionate”.
However, she said there was a need for a clear criteria, based on scientific data, to be established to identify “aggressive dogs” so that the court’s order was not misused to capture and confine dogs without justification or based on personal prejudice.
Sen. Jon Husted (R-Ohio) holds a six-point lead over former Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), according to a poll released days after Brown launched his campaign for Senate.
Husted led Brown 50 percent to 44 percent, according to a new Emerson College poll released on Friday. The poll’s margin of error was plus or minus three percentage points.
“In the first public poll following Sherrod Brown’s 2026 campaign kick-off, the former Senator trails the incumbent Jon Husted by six points, though he has a higher name recognition than the first-term Senator,” said Spencer Kimball, executive director of Emerson College Polling.
Brown launched his campaign on Monday, less than a year after he lost his reelection bid to Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-Ohio) in November.
Despite being the last statewide elected Democrat in Ohio when he lost his reelection bid last November, Brown will likely be a formidable challenger. The former senator’s campaign announced on Tuesday that he raised $3.6 million in the 24 hours after he launched his bid.
The nonpartisan Cook Political Report moved its rating of Ohio’s Senate race from likely Republican to lean Republican following Brown’s entrance into the race, reflecting the competitive edge Brown brings to the contest.
However, Brown will face an uphill climb in the race to win back his Senate seat. Ohio is considered a solidly red state, which President Trump won by roughly 11 points. The same poll showed President Trump with a 49 percent approval rate and a 42 percent disapproval rate.
Husted was appointed by Gov. Mike DeWine (R) earlier this year after Vice President Vance vacated the seat to join the Trump administration.
The Emerson College poll was conducted Aug. 18-19 among 1,000 active Ohio registered voters.
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Crypto markets are seeing a sharp pullback in recent weeks, but onchain data indicates potential buying opportunities amid elevated profit-taking.
What Happened: Glassnode data shows the dip is driven largely by long-term investors taking profits. While sentiment appears negative, the conditions could present a favorable entry point for patient traders.
Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has seen more than $1.5 billion in profits realized since July 18, marking the largest profit-taking since December 2024.
Trending: The same firms that backed Uber, Venmo and eBay are investing in this pre-IPO company disrupting a $1.8T market — and you can too at just $2.90/share.
Trader Ted Pillows noted that despite minor 2–3% dips causing panic, true tops involve mass selling to go all-in on crypto—something not currently observed, suggesting further upside potential.
Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH): $575 million have been realized since Aug. 16, the largest in this cycle, showing longer-term ETH holders taking profits.
Solana (CRYPTO: SOL): more than $105 million realized since Aug. 17.
XRP (CRYPTO: XRP): on July 24, $375 million was realized, reflecting strong distribution similar to December 2024.
TRON (CRYPTO: TRX): $230 million realized on Aug. 6, setting a record for TRX and highlighting broader altcoin sell pressure.
Why It Matters: Santiment data shows retail sentiment has shifted sharply bearish, as Bitcoin dips below $113,000, the most negative since June 22, when geopolitical tensions presented a window of weakness.
Historically, extreme fear among traders has signaled potential buying opportunities, as markets often move opposite to crowd expectations.
The recent profit-taking may thus indicate a dip-and-bounce setup in the making.
Welcome to a brand new series of Onside/Offside! The Premier League is back, and with it, new signings and debutants to the league have also arrived. Luis Miguel Echegaray shares his thoughts on some of the biggest names and determines the ones who will immediately shine, and those who might need a little more time to find consistency in their debut campaigns for their respective clubs.
Wirtz is one of the most exciting prospects in Europe, and one of the best players in Germany. What makes him special is his ability to find the holes no other player seemingly can. In this Liverpool side, where you’re supported by a strong core of defensive buildup, he will be able to orchestrate and eventually find the opportunities to create for his team.
In the Premier League season opener against Bournemouth on Friday night, he did not have his best game, but I think this was a solitary issue that was more about the opponent than Wirtz himself. Against a side coached by Andoni Iraola, you will be demanded to run a lot because their high press and intoxicating way of playing forces the attacking midfielders to play catch-up whenever the ball is lost. That’s exactly what Wirtz had to prioritize, as he averaged more distance covered per minute than anyone else on his team. Only teammate Dominik Szoboszlai covered more, but he played more minutes. Wirtz practically had no touches in the opponent’s box, nor could he find those killer passes that usually turn into goals.
Again, I think Wirtz will adjust quite rapidly; he’s too smart not to, because he is from the school of adaptation. For Bayer Leverkusen, the right-footed star was primarily used as a left-sided No. 10, but he can also slot in more centrally. All of this will be on display once he finds his rhythm, which will hopefully come fast because Arne Slot’s side’s next two games are against Newcastle United (away) and Arsenal (home).
Speaking of Newcastle, I have no idea what will happen with Alexander Isak‘s situation. But if the Swedish striker ends up moving to Merseyside before the Sept. 1 transfer deadline, Liverpool would have completed the greatest summer of business in the history of the league. Honestly, do they even need Isak? Because I have to tell you, while Wirtz struggled, Hugo Ekitike was wonderful against the Cherries. The French striker scored the first goal Friday night at Anfield and assisted the second, but he also showed his versatility.
When he was growing up, Ekitike had two players he loved to watch: Neymar Jr. and Karim Benzema. This makes perfect sense, because he is a striker who doesn’t have to be a center forward. There are multiple assets to his game, and that will be beneficial for a Liverpool side who can tinker with three mobile attackers in a lineup. I expect big things this season from the former Eintracht Frankfurt man.
Now, I want to put this on the record. I wrote most of the following analysis before the opening weekend, so I just want to make sure everyone is aware I am not just going off from what we saw on Saturday. Remember, this is a marathon and not a sprint, and most of the productivity that will be needed from these players will be truly tested in the later months.
Having said all that, out of any new duo of arrivals to the Premier League, Reijnders and Cherki to me are the most exciting because I think they are perfect for Manchester City and manager Pep Guardiola’s philosophy.
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Will Tijjani Reijnders be the signing of the season?
Gab Marcotti and Julien Laurens debate if Tijjani Reijnders will be the signing of the season after scoring on his Manchester City debut.
Replacing Kevin De Bruyne is all but impossible: the Belgian midfielder will forever be remembered as one of the club’s and Premier League’s greatest players. It’s also true that you don’t replace De Bruyne with just one person — as Guardiola has mentioned in the past, you do it with multiple.
Cherki and Reijnders are wonderful arrivals to the Etihad because they will provide this “so fresh and so clean” new-look City with a more dynamic punch. The former, from Lyon, is an incredibly versatile and talented 21-year-old who can cause multiple headaches with his dribbling, vision and scoring. He ticks many boxes: Last season, the France international earned 34 goal contributions in all competitions for Lyon. He came on in the 73rd minute in City’s Premier League opener on Saturday, and scored his goal against Wolves with wonderful skill and instinct just eight minutes later.
Reijnders, 27, arrived after winning Serie A midfielder of the season in 2024-25. In some ways, he has the brain of a young Sergio Busquets, making him able to get out of sticky situations when facing pressure from the opposition. Or maybe a Dutch Juan Roman Riquelme. Oh, and he also loves to score as he netted 16 goals in all competitions for Milan last year. He was magnificent against Wolves, delivering one of the best debuts I have seen by a midfielder in this league.
With a goal and assist, he became the second player in City history to do this in a Premier League debut alongside Sergio Agüero. That’s what I call being in good company.
City have a new personality, one that’s actually closer to what Pep used to do with Barcelona. He is not just about possession, as there’s now a willingness to carry the ball and exploit spaces, causing headaches with dynamic dribbling and penetration. Back then it was Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto’o and Thierry Henry. Now, it’s Cherki, Reijnders, Haaland and others who are realizing that there are more ways than one to hurt an opponent.
Please don’t let the “offside” tag scare you, Arsenal fans. Nor should you be too critical of his uninspiring debut against Manchester United. There is, however, food for thought for Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta.
There are absolutely no doubts about the qualities possessed by the Swedish striker. None. The 27-year-old has come far since his days with Coventry City, when he ended as the second-top scorer in the 2022-23 English Championship season with 21 goals in 46 matches. That prompted Portuguese side Sporting CP (managed by Ruben Amorim) to sign him in summer 2023. Fast forward to the present, and Gyökeres has arrived in the Premier League after a tremendous time in Portugal, netting 39 goals in 33 matches in the Primeira Liga last season. Overall, he scored 54 in 52 matches.
As I said, we know this man can score.
“He is a player that the moment you leave him with space one-on-one, he is going to destroy you,” Arteta said after Arsenal’s final preseason match, a win over Athletic Club at Emirates Stadium. “He’s going to create a lot of space for us as well. In any moment or situation, he is a player that can score a goal.”
The problem, however, is that these moments Arteta talked about can happen only once Gyökeres acclimates to the league.
He was woeful Sunday against Manchester United, facing his former boss, failing to register a shot and earning just three touches in the opponent’s box. But this is the thing: Arsenal are not a team that likes to play based on chaos, while Gyökeres thrives on it. I think the goals will come, but Arsenal and their new striker have to find a balance that suits their personalities.
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Nicol: Don’t judge Gyokeres or Sesko too quickly
Steve Nicol thinks some of the criticism of Gyokeres and Sesko is a bit overblown after Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Man United.
My other qualm is about consistency — and I know it sounds like a scapegoat commenting on the very simple question of “Can he do it week-in and week-out in a stronger league?” — but it’s definitely legitimate to ask, especially for a striker, where the transition from Primeira Liga to the Premier League is not easy. Back in 2021-22, Darwin Núñez, for example, was magnificent with Benfica (26 goals in 28 league matches), but left Liverpool for Al-Hilal without ever matching that number. In fact, during his entire time with Liverpool, he only scored 25 goals in the Premier League.
I don’t think this will be the case for Gyökeres, but a lot rests on his shoulders because the Gunners know that patience is running out with their fans. They want to win the league — or the Champions League — and in this campaign, alongside the additions of Martín Zubimendi and Cristhian Mosquera, a more experienced Ethan Nwaneri and other tools at their disposal, they have never been closer. The biggest criticism for Arsenal has been to get a top striker, especially after last season when they failed to get out of sticky situations and endured 14 draws, the joint-biggest number in the top half of the table. The addition of Noni Madueke (alongside Bukayo Saka) helps, as deliveries from wide areas will be key, but again, expectations on Gyökeres are high, especially in a congested season. He can do it, but it will be difficult. The start to the league’s campaign also doesn’t help because after playing Manchester United at Old Trafford to open the season, Arsenal must face Liverpool, Man City and Newcastle United in the first two months of action.
The reported arrival of Eberechi Eze — as Arsenal pulled an Idris Elba and reportedly hijacked the deal ahead of Tottenham — to cover Kai Havertz’s injury is a tremendous get for the Gunners and it will hopefully help Gyökeres as maybe Arteta will play both of them and create a one-two punch, in the same manner Eze would do it with another powerful striker in Jean-Philippe Mateta. But those talking points are for another day.
Ultimately, the questions return for the Swede: Can Gyökeres help Arsenal finally win the Premier League after 22 years? Will he score 20 or more goals in his debut season? Are these questions mutually exclusive? We’ll have to wait and find out, but all I know is this: A team who likes to build when attacking has to find a way to fit their new player who lives not to build, but to destroy.
Manchester United have a similar issue with their new attacker. It’s not exactly the same as we’re talking about a younger player, but time is of the essence for both player and club.
Arriving from the Bundesliga and RB Leipzig, the Slovenian has a strong foundation, but much like Gyökeres and Arsenal, the pressure to deliver for Manchester United is massive. For a 22-year-old, that can be a lot to ask of your new forward in the best league in the world.
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Will Manchester United be able to sign more players?
Mark Ogden explains how Manchester United’s transfer window could be hindered by a lack of movement out of the club
Again, just like with his Swedish counterpart, there is no denying Sesko’s talent. He is very tall (6-foot-5), fast and possesses a very powerful shot. Ruben Amorim also likes his strikers to do multiple things, so Sesko’s diverse attributes should help United in many categories. He will be needed a lot, too, because the Red Devils are in a full-scale rebuild after finishing 15th last season and losing in the Europa League final. The bad news: Due to the United’s myriad needs and an urgency for drastic improvement, Sesko’s season depends on confidence and stability, not exactly things you get in plentiful supply at Old Trafford. At least, not recently. Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha‘s arrival might also steal some of the spotlight, but again, at 22, Sesko is not yet the finished product.
Against Arsenal, Sesko came on as a substitute in the 65th minute to replace Mason Mount, who was acting as a false nine to complement Mbeumo and Cunha. But 25 minutes and change are just not enough for him to make an impact. Sesko was making good runs but wasn’t receiving the ball in desired opportunities. I actually think that if Sesko started the match, United might have been able to even take the lead. His presence would have forced Arsenal to rethink how they chose to defend.
I think the striker’s time will come, but Amorim has to be very careful about the way he handles his lineup because Mbeumo, Cunha, Fernandes and Sesko all demand the ball.
I think Sesko is a fantastic addition to United and the Premier League, but is he the club’s savior? Can he help them reach a Champions League place and jump from 15th to fifth or fourth? It’s a big ask. But all Sesko can do right now is get his necessary time on the pitch to answer these questions.
