Cristiano Ronaldo has taken over but Manchester United could still unleash the beast in Jadon Sancho with one simple decision.
Before Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Manchester United, the club has endured an exhausting transfer saga with then-Borussia Dortmund star Jadon Sancho.
The young winger became the most sought-after soccer prodigy in Europe and Manchester United was among his top suitors. In the end, the Red Devils finally landed Sancho and his arrival lifted Old Trafford off the ground.
Sancho’s whopping £72.9 million deal, alongside the series of incredible performances in Bundesliga, led to excitement and expectations which eventually subsided when Ronaldo entered the scene.
It was a bit of a no-brainer that when the Portuguese striker came in, Sancho, as well as some of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s other primary frontmen. will be relegated.
Atop that, Sancho made the least impact amongst Manchester United’s other notable signings despite having played in all five of the club’s matches this season.
This Sancho is a complete opposite of the player he was at Dortmund, or maybe not.
It can be recalled that during the Englishman’s maiden season with the German outfit, he didn’t leave a lasting impression on the pitch, registering only one goal and four assists to his name. However, Sancho swiftly bounced back the following season and tallied a statement 12 goals and 18 assists.
Sancho’s fans could be hoping that the phenomenal attacker will repeat what he’s done in Bundesliga in the English Premier League. But for his former Watford youth team coach Louis Lancaster, joining Manchester United just put him in the very difficult situation.
“The only thing which upsets me is why did he need to leave the Premier League?” Lancaster Manchester Evening News. “We have to be incredibly grateful to Germany for giving our players the opportunity. You have to appreciate players are going to make mistakes, it's part of the process, but it is how they come back from those.”
“Jadon went away, his first year wasn't too great, but he had people who trust him and now what he has achieved is incredible,” the coach added. “He got his England call-up because of Germany, because of Borussia Dortmund.”
Lancaster could either be right or wrong about Sancho being at Manchester United.
However, based on how Solskjaer assesses his player, it appears that Sancho is just on the right track.
According to the Manchester United boss, though many have been delighted by Sancho’s nose for goals and attacking abilities, he is certain that he’s the type of player who is also capable of making his teammates “better.”
“He's [Sancho] going to bring goals and assists,” Solskjaer explained. “He's not a one-season wonder anymore, he's proved that he's been consistent.”
“But I think Jadon's greatest quality is that he can add to other people's games,” he added. “So though you have spent money and signed one player, I think you're going to get a better Bruno [Fernandes], a better [Paul] Pogba, [Edinson] Cavani. I think that's his greatest skill-set, adding value to other people's games.”
Follow Us
Subscribe