Benjamin Sesko and Slovenia find themselves in the midst of respective summer battles.
The former is being pulled all matter of directions as clubs across Europe -- including Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain -- wave tantalising offers and promises the 21-year-old forward's way as they attempt to steal him away from current club RB Leipzig.
Meanwhile, Slovenia are staring down a daunting group-stage task with England, Denmark and Serbia standing between them and a first-ever jaunt outside the Euro group stages.
Gareth Southgate's England will no doubt be licking their lips at their group stage prospects, but with a first major tournament on the horizon for one of Europe's most exciting young attacking talents, should England fret? And how realistic are Slovenia's chances of getting out of the group stages?
The Mirror takes a look.
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Group: England, Denmark, Serbia
Slovenia face a daunting, if not impossible, challenge if they want to get out of the group stages, with two semi-finalists from last summer’s Euros in England and Denmark to face plus a testing squad in Serbia.
Ranked 57th in the world, manager Matjaz Kek’s side are comfortably the lowest-ranked opposition in Group E and are favourites to finish bottom. This is just Slovenia’s second Euros appearance, their last arriving 24 years ago in 2000, a tournament looked back on gingerly after failing to win a single game in the group stages.
Star player: Benjamin Sesko
Benjamin Sesko, a name familiar with any Arsenal, Chelsea or Manchester United fan or those spending their summer locked in a staring contest with transfer window live blogs.
Benjamin Sesko is believed to be a next star in the making (Photo by Jurij Kodrun/Getty Images)The 21-year-old RB Leipzig forward is not only being touted as one of the summer’s gems but also Slovenia’s next big thing. Sesko is hailed for his height and athleticism, along with his pace and proficiency in front of goal (he managed a laudable 18 goals in 42 appearances for Leipzig this season, seven of which arrived in Leipzig’s last seven matches of the Bundesliga seasons. Which really speaks to the ultimate attribute Sesko boasts: his adaptability.
After breaking through at Red Bull Salzburg in Austria, his swap to sister club Leipzig last year was anything but smooth. Sesko battled with fellow new arrival Loïs Openda for the striking spotlight. But Sesko eventually came out on top, finishing the season with plenty of interested Premier League suitors.
Slovenia's head coach Matjaz Kek (Photo by Jurij Kodrun/Getty Images))Of course, none of this is necessarily ground-breaking. Slovenia’s current record goal-scorer, Zlatko Zahovic, predicted as much in 2022 when he declared that Sesko would break his record of 35 international goals. Sesko is currently on 11 in 28 matches. We’re getting there.
Likelihood of getting out of the group
That’s the beauty of paltry expectation: there’s ample room to blow everything out of the water. And Slovenia have cut themselves tough opposition, having scalped both Portugal and USA in recent months, while boasting some impressive talent in (obviously) Sesko but so too Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak, one of the best goalkeepers of the best past decade, along with Panathinaikos’ duo Adam Čerin and Andraz Sporar who have worked well with Sesko in particular.
Kek, a veteran centre-back with a clever knack for tactics, configures his side into an disciplined 4-4-2 structure that still coaxes forward plenty of goals, as their qualification campaign demonstrated. Indeed, Slovenia finished runners-up in their qualifying group behind Denmark after claiming seven wins from 10 matches and scoring 20 goals in the process.
Jan Oblak is one of the best goalkeepers of the past decade (Photo by Jurij Kodrun/Getty Images))Even so, Slovenia won only one of the four matches they played against Denmark and Finland in their group (they beat Finland 3-0 and lost 2-0; drew 1-1 with Denmark but also lost 2-1), meaning some stunning results will be required if they are to be one of the four third-placed teams to advance to the round of 16.
There will also need to be a temperance of how much magic a 21-year-old forward at his first major tournament can realistically stir.
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But there is still potential here. Serbia have been underwhelming with Dragan Stojković at the helm, their tactics often crying out for something more cohesive and fastidious. And a familiar opponent in Denmark could be a boon for Slovenia, who will have learned the best way to negate the Danes' strengths.
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