Manchester City, Liverpool 'join Premier League rivals in Benjamin Sesko race'

The 20-year-old officially joined Leipzig last summer from sister club Red Bull Salzburg for a reported €24m (£20.5m), penning a five-year contract until 2028.

Sesko was one of Europe's most sought-after strikers before Leipzig won the race for his signature after scoring 29 goals in 79 games during his time in Austria with Salzburg.

The Slovenia international initially struggled to nail down a regular starting spot under Leipzig head coach Marco Rose, but since the turn of the year, he has played regularly alongside fellow striker Lois Openda.

Sesko has started and scored in each of his last three Bundesliga starts, increasing his goal tally in all competitions to 10 for the season, while he also played the full 90 minutes in Leipzig's 1-0 defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League last 16 on Tuesday.

Addressing his game time after the loss to Real Madrid, Sesko told reporters: "I notice that I'm getting more and more used to the game in Leipzig. I'm young, I want to take advantage of my chances and score as often as possible."

Leipzig sporting director Rouven Schroder added: "It was unbelievable how much [Sesko] ran, how he worked for the team and how many chances he had. The boy is unstoppable."

Recent reports claim that a €50m (£43m) release clause will become active in Sesko's contract this summer, which has led to speculation over a possible exit.

Premier League trio Arsenal, Chelsea and Man United, as well as Serie A outfit AC Milan, have all been credited with an interest in Sesko, with a new centre-forward believed to be high on their list of summer transfer targets.

However, according to Bild, Man City and Liverpool are the latest clubs to enter the race for the youngster's signature along with La Liga giants Barcelona.

All three clubs are said to be keeping a close eye on Sesko's development at Leipzig and have been alerted to the striker's summer release clause.

Man City already have a plethora of attacking options at their disposal, with Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez the two primary candidates to operate as a central striker.

Haaland, who briefly played alongside Sesko at Salzburg, has scored 73 goals in 79 games for the Pep Guardiola's side, including 21 strikes in 26 appearances so far this season.

Although Haaland still has over three years remaining on his City contract, the Norwegian has been linked with a possible switch to Real Madrid, with Sesko potentially viewed as a replacement by the Citizens.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have predominantly used Darwin Nunez down the middle this term, with the Uruguayan contributing with 12 goals and 11 assists in 36 games across all tournaments.

Mohamed Salah, who has been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, remains a key goalscoring asset for Jurgen Klopp's side having netted 14 goals in 20 Premier League games this term, while Diogo Jota, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo have also featured regularly in attack.