New release clause revealed – why Benjamin Sesko looks set to depart RB Leipzig this summer

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Arsenal transfer target 

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The current season may be far from over but we’re already seeing a number of transfer rumours build up momentum and run the risk of becoming full-blown transfer sagas before the summer window has even opened. One such story revolves around the future of RB Leipzig striker Benjamin Sesko and where he may be playing his football next season. Signed from sister club RB Salzburg for just €24 million in the summer of 2023, the Slovenian striker has gone from strength to strength in the Bundesliga and now seems destined to make the move to the Premier League this summer. 

Since the turn of the year the 21-year-old talent has been linked with a move to Barcelona, Chelsea and Arsenal. But it has been the latter club that has seen sustained reports continuing to suggest that the North London club would be prepared to go all in to sign Sesko if he became available to sign in the summer. Naturally, Mikel Arteta and his backroom staff will be seriously considering any option to bolster their attack next season, following a number of high-profile injuries to their forwards that has left the Premier League giants resorting to playing central midfielder Mikel Merino up front as a make-shift striker. That, in turn, has cost them dearly in the title race and the club will be intent on avoiding the same mistakes again. But how likely is a move away from RB Leipzig this summer for the star striker?

Rumour

B. Sesko

Centre-Forward

RB Leipzig		18 %		Arsenal
Bundesliga				Premier League

Why RB Leipzig could sell Benjamin Sesko this summer

According to a new report from Sky Germany, Sesko has a clause in his contract that would allow him to depart the German club for an agreed upon fee. While the Slovenian international doesn’t have a formal release clause, he does reportedly have an agreement in place as part of his contract that would allow him to be sold in the summer. According to the German broadcaster, this clause is performance related and will change depending on how well the player performs between now and the end of the season. Sky claims that it currently stands at €70m, but could rise to €80m depending on how many goals and assists Sesko bags for Leipzig before the end of the season. Either way, it would seem as though Sesko will be available for Arsenal or their Premier League rivals for at least €70m this summer. 

While a single report is hardly solid proof, we need only look at Leipzig’s record in the transfer market to see that a sale this summer would make sense even if no release clause existed. Whether it be Dani Olmo’s €55m to Barcelona last summer, or the departure of Josko Gvardiol to Manchester City, Dominik Szoboszlai to Liverpool and Christopher Nkunku to Chelsea for a combined €220m a year before, Leipzig have always made a habit of selling their best players when they are at the peak of their powers and have garnered the highest asking price. At this moment in time, Sesko’s market value stands at an impressive €50m, having risen by €26m since his move to Germany. But that figure is likely to increase between now and the end of the season. 

How good is Benjamin Sesko? 

With a price for the player’s services seemingly set in writing, the next question for Arsenal or Chelsea fans ought be how good the Leipzig striker truly is. Both clubs often rely on players that once scored goals for fun in the Bundesliga to lead their attacking lines each week to mixed results and while Sesko is clearly one of the most sought after players in European football in 2025, that doesn’t entirely mean that he’d hit the ground running and thrive in the Premier League. However, when we take a closer look at his stats, there are plenty of reasons for English football fans to get excited about the prospect of Sesko swapping the German top-flight for its English counterpart. 

For example, Seko’s 17 goals in 34 games for Leipzig this season works out at 0.61 goals per 90 minutes of football, which aren’t exactly mind-blowing figures. Indeed, they’re notably lower than last season’s average of 0.78 goals per 90 in all competitions for the German club. But when we consider the fact that Leipzig have spent much of this season languishing in fourth or fifth place as they clearly struggled without key playmaker Xavi Simons, following an injury that ruled him out for 13 games this season, it points to a team that have been far from functional or indeed capable of getting the very best out of the star striker up front. As such, while Sesko’s goal scoring numbers for this season are far from impressive, the very fact that he’s scored just three fewer non-penalty goals than Harry Kane in the Bundesliga this season is a testament to his talent in an otherwise poor Leipzig team. 

How would Benjamin Sesko fit in at Arsenal? 

While Sesko has a number of strings to his bow, the 21-year-old forward is unequivocally a centre forward in the traditional sense. And if Arsenal were to spend much of their summer transfer budget on the Slovenian international, they’d likely need to find a way of wedging him into an already settled attacking line-up. But that’s not to say that Arteta would struggle to find a spot in his team for the young striker if he joined the club in the summer. In fact, Sesko may be exactly what this Arsenal team needs to vastly improve their attack in 2025. 

For much of this season, Sesko has been playing in attacking two alongside fellow striker Loïs Openda for much of this season and while Leipzig’s team as a whole has struggled the two forwards have formed a formidable partnership. While Openda tends to drift out wide and take players on, Sesko has thrived as the penalty box striker and it’s not hard to envisage a similar scenario at Arsenal with Sesko playing as the classic No.9 and Kai Havertz playing off the Slovenian talent as Arsenal’s second striker. That would naturally take much of the goal-scoring responsibility off the German talent’s shoulders, without Arteta needing to drop one of his most important players this season.