Perhaps it was not as far-fetched as it seemed when Benjamin Sesko claimed his Red Bull Salzburg team-mates told him he was even better than Erling Haaland.
‘Benjamin is maybe the better football player, better to play with the team, technically maybe better at the same age,’ Rene Aufhauser tells Sportsmail.
Having coached both players at Salzburg (Haaland moved from there to Borussia Dortmund to Manchester City) former Austria international Aufhauser is well-placed to make the sort of comparisons between Sesko and Haaland that the Slovenian striker says ‘motivate me and give me energy’.
Benjamin Sesko tormented Liverpool’s defence as he scored against them in pre-season
And 19-year-old Sesko — who faces Chelsea, one of his many summer suitors, in the Champions League on Wednesday night — already appears to have few weaknesses.
‘His natural movements are so good, he’s 6ft 4ins tall, fast and has very, very good physical ability,’ Aufhauser says, explaining that Sesko’s all-round sporting prowess — he played volleyball, tennis and basketball to a good standard when younger — are factors in why he is such a natural athlete.
‘He’s so smooth with the ball, very good technique, good finishing and he jumps so high. Very, very, good with the head. It’s unbelievable.’
No wonder some within Salzburg think he might be the best striker the club has ever had.
Now the 19-year-old striker faces Chelsea in the Champions League on Wednesday evening
Rene Aufhauser (pictured) has coached both Sesko and Erling Haaland at Red Bull Salzburg
The last bit that Sesko needs to add to his make-up, Aufhauser feels, is where Haaland now excels.
‘Erling was mentally a monster and better at the same age,’ Aufhauser says. ‘This is the last five, 10 per cent that Benji has to get.’
Aufhauser fondly recalls how relentless and focused Haaland was in finishing sessions and the sheer number of chances he would convert even if his touch wasn’t perfect.
He remembers how, despite his height and power, Haaland used to ‘head the ball like a turtle, his one weakness at the beginning’ but worked like crazy to improve.
Disappointment did not derail Haaland, either. ‘If he missed a chance everyone had this feeling he didn’t care,’ Aufhauser explains.
Sesko has been likened to Manchester City star Haaland, who spent one year at Salzburg
‘He was still in the game, focused and had so much self-confidence that he knew if he got another two chances, he would…