Jadon Sancho is in limbo at Manchester United.
Having fallen foul of Erik ten Hag’s disciplinarian approach at Old Trafford after posting an unhappy message on X (formerly Twitter) when the United manager left him out of the matchday squad for a recent game at Arsenal, Sancho’s relationship with the club was left in tatters.
Ten Hag said Sancho’s performances in training had not been up to scratch, a claim Sancho disputed, adding “don’t believe everything you read”. And although the England international belatedly deleted the post, he’s been training separately and hasn’t appeared in a United game since.
The Sporting News looks at the relationship between Ten Hag and Sancho, what both men have said and if there’s any way back for him at Manchester United.
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What happened between Jadon Sancho and Erik ten Hag?
To understand the full picture, let’s take it back to October of last year when Sancho missed United training and matches for around three months.
He was granted time away from the club due to “physical and mental issues” according to Ten Hag. Sancho was then sent to the Netherlands to train alone with coaches appointed by the United manager.
Ten Hag reintegrated him into the side in February of this year and Sancho scored against Leeds United in his first game back in the Premier League. The forward was included in nearly every squad for the rest of the season but was primarily a substitute. His 2022/23 campaign saw him score seven goals across his 41 appearances.
Fast forward to this summer and it looked as though United may finally have the player they thought they had signed from Borussia Dortmund for £73 million in 2021. He looked sharp in preseason and it even looked as though he may have a new role in the starting XI when he scored a fantastic goal against the Gunners in New York.
Thank You New York! 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/OAxDXpy5s3
— Jadon Sancho (@Sanchooo10) July 23, 2023
For United’s opening four Premier League games of the season, Sancho was on the bench for three and excluded from the squad in the other. Ten Hag was questioned for leaving him out for the 3-1 defeat at Arsenal and said: “On his performance on training we didn’t select him. You have to reach the level every day at Manchester United. You can make choices in the front line, so in this game he wasn’t selected.”
Since then, reports suggested tensions had built between Ten Hag and Sancho in training, with the Dutchman unhappy with the player’s commitment levels behind the scenes.
Jadon Sancho statement: What did he say?
Sancho took exception to Ten Hag’s suggestion he was not training to the required standard and the Arsenal snub.
In a social media post that was initially pinned to his profile but has since been deleted, Sancho said: “Please don’t believe everything you read! I will not allow people saying things that [are] completely untrue. I have conducted myself in training very well this week.
“I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t get into, I’ve been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair!”
Sancho then added: “All I want to do is to play football with a smile on my face and contribute to my team.”
Ten Hag then took the decision to banish Sancho from group training and make him unavailable for selection, until he apologises for his outburst. He’s not been involved in any of United’s past four matches and his time in purgatory looks set to continue.
United put out the following statement saying: “Jadon Sancho will remain on a personal training programme away from the first-team group, pending resolution of a squad discipline issue.”
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Will Sancho play for Manchester United again?
Following the initial fall-out, it was suggested that a potential move to Saudi Arabia could be on the cards for Sancho, given the transfer window for most of Europe’s major leagues was already closed. A possible loan moan with an obligation to buy was suggested, but talks never developed into anything concrete. Their transfer window is now shut and Sancho remains at the club until January at the earliest.
It remains unknown how long he will be training away from the first-team group, but after the player deactivated his Instagram account amid further reports of unhappiness with Ten Hag, it looks to be a long road back.
United, at the moment, are also without Antony as he deals with a series of abuse allegations made against him, with Mason Greenwood loaned out to Getafe after rape and domestic abuse charges against him were dropped. The club don’t expect Greenwood to play for them again, while Antony’s absence is indefinite.
For Sancho, the issues are purely footballing, albeit disruptive for the club and Ten Hag.
According to The Mirror three United first-team regulars have encouraged Ten Hag to issue an apology to Ten Hag to resolve the situation. It seems the Dutchman largely has the backing of his squad in terms of how he’s treated Sancho.
“It depends on him,” Ten Hag told the media before United’s 1-0 win over Burnley on September 23. It’s likely that the questions will keep coming for the United boss on this issue.