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Relations between Jadon Sancho and his Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag are strained to say the least.
The aftermath of United’s 3-1 defeat to Arsenal in the Premier League — as dramatic as it was, with two late Gunners’ goals following Alejandro Garnacho’s disallowed strike — was dominated by the row between Sancho and Ten Hag, a rift which even now is showing no signs of healing.
Ten Hag revealed he had omitted the winger from the matchday squad at the Emirates Stadium due to his poor performances in training, with the player hitting back on social media.
It has created an additional headache for the United boss during a difficult start to the 2023/24 season, during which off-field issues have been distracting for Ten Hag, results have been mixed, while the protracted process around a possible sale of the cub lingers on.
The Sporting News examines the situation, what has been said, and whether Sancho has a long-term future at Old Trafford.
MORE: Manchester United squad depth 2023/24: Injuries mount
Will Jadon Sancho leave Man United?
Sancho’s initial statement, in which he claimed he’d been made a “scapegoat”, left his future up in the air, with Ten Hag taking the decision to banish him from training after the social media outburst.
Sancho responded to Ten Hag’s comments saying his performances in training had not been up to scratch. The player: “Please don’t believe everything you read! I will not allow people saying things that [are] completely untrue.
“I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t go into, I have been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair!”
There is a chance he could now have played his final game for the club, although his outburst came days after the transfer window closed in England (on September 1), meaning he cannot be transferred to another Premier League team until January at the earliest. That’s unless he is released from his contract, but that is due to run until June 2026 and would be costly for United.
Sancho was briefly linked with an exit from United in the summer, with some reports suggesting he was on Chelsea’s radar and could have been included in a swap deal for Marc Cucurella, who United considered signing before the loan addition of Sergio Reguilon on deadline day.
A transfer to a club in Turkey or the lucrative Saudi Pro League was rumoured, however, neither came to fruition and it appears Sancho could be left in limbo until he’s made available for transfer in January. But there is until then for him and Ten Hag to bury the hatchet.
Jadon Sancho and Erik ten Hag fallout at Man United
Ten Hag wants Sancho to apologise for his outburst, saying “it depends on him” whether he returns to the first team picture after being put on a “separate training programme” away from the main United training group.
Sancho has also been made unavailable for matches since being dropped from the squad that went to Arsenal and reports claim he’s since been banned from all senior squad facilities at the club’s training ground – including the canteen.
The Mirror have suggested three United first team players have encouraged Sancho to issue an apology to his manager, with those unnamed stars reportedly believing the player “crossed a line”.
🗣️ “Jadon [Sancho] – Performance in training so we didn’t select him. You have to reach a level everyday at Manchester United.”
Erik ten Hag on dropping Jadon Sancho from his matchday squad against Arsenal. pic.twitter.com/1nhSPBIdZw
— Football Daily (@footballdaily) September 4, 2023
Sancho hasn’t started for United yet this season, making substitute appearances in their opening three matches of 2023/24. He’s been absent for their games against Arsenal, Brighton, Bayern Munich and Burnley and there looks to be no quick route back into Ten Hag’s plans, unless something drastic changes.
Reports continue to emerge emphasising the friction between Ten Hag and Sancho and the player has now taken the step of deactivating his Instagram account.
What happened to Jadon Sancho last season?
Sancho was absent from United training and matches for three months in the 2022/23 campaign after being afforded time away to work on “physical and mental issues”, according to the club. Ten Hag personally appointed coaches to work with the player in the Netherlands.
He returned in February, scoring against Leeds United on his Premier League comeback, and he re-established himself as a regular squad member under Ten Hag — although he was largely used as a substitute.
Across the whole 2022/23 campaign, Sancho scored seven goals for United in 41 appearances in all competitions.
Jadon Sancho stats for Man United
Here’s how Sancho has fared since he swapped Borussia Dortmund for United in a £73 million ($92.1m) move to United in July 2021. He is now in his third Old Trafford campaign.
Season
Games
Goals
Assists
2021/22
38
5
3
2022/23
41
7
3
2023/24*
3
0
0
*The 2023/24 season is ongoing. All stats in all competitions and correct as of September 4, 2023.
Premier League 2023/24 TV channels, live streams
Region
TV
Streaming
Australia
—
Optus Sport
Canada
—
Fubo Canada
Hong Kong
—
Now TV
India
Star Sports
Disney+, Hotstar,
JioTV
Malaysia
Astro SuperSport
Astro Go
New Zealand
Sky Sport
Sky Sport Now,
Sky Go
Singapore
StarHub
StarHub TV+
UK
Sky Sports, TNT Sports
NOW TV, Sky Go,
Amazon Prime
USA
USA Network,
Telemundo, Universo
Fubo, Peacock
UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and TNT Sports streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime.
USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on Fubo. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.
Canada: Every Premier League game this season is live streamed exclusively via Fubo in Canada.
Australia: Fans in Australia can stream every match live and on demand on Optus Sport.
India: Star Sports network has the rights to show Premier League matches in India. As well as an English broadcast on Star Sports Select, select matches will be available via regional feeds on Star Sports 3 (in Bengali, English, Kannada, Malayalam), Star Sports 1 (Bangla) and Star Sports 1 (Tamil).