Few players have seen their market value collapse as dramatically as Jadon Sancho, whose stock has plummeted since his move to Manchester United back in 2021
Jadon Sancho in training
Jadon Sancho is now worth a fraction of what he was worth as a 19-year-old
(Image: PA)
Jadon Sancho's stock has plummeted since arriving at Manchester United.
The 25-year-old, who sealed a deadline day loan move to Aston Villa, was once regarded as one of Europe's brightest prospects. That reputation persuaded United to splash £73million to prise him from Borussia Dortmund in 2021.
At the time, the fee - among the biggest in English football history - seemed justified. Just a year earlier, Transfermarkt had valued Sancho, then 19, at £113m. But his stock quickly began to tumble.
Today, he's valued at roughly £24m - a staggering £89m drop in the space of five years. An underwhelming, unproductive stint at Old Trafford has done most of the damage, with Sancho struggling for form, confidence and goals.
He scored just five times in all competitions in his debut season at the club - a stark contrast to the 16 and 20 he registered in his final two campaigns in Germany.
Managerial upheaval hardly helped, nor did Cristiano Ronaldo's surprise return. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, the man who signed Sancho, was sacked before Christmas, while Ronaldo's arrival forced an attacking reshuffle that pushed Marcus Rashford to the left and had Sancho shoehorned into an unfamiliar role on the right.
Jude Bellingham (L) and Jadon Sancho (R)
Jadon Sancho, like Jude Bellingham, exploded onto the scene at Dortmund
Things improved under Erik ten Hag, albeit briefly. Sancho ended the 2022/23 season with six Premier League goals and a more pivotal role in the first team. But everything unravelled at the start of the following campaign.
In September 2023, Sancho was dropped from the squad to face Arsenal, with Ten Hag publicly criticising his training performances. Sancho hit back on social media, accusing his manager of lying and claiming he had long been made a "scapegoat."
What followed was a four-month standoff. Banished to train with the reserves, Sancho eventually secured a loan return to Dortmund. By then, however, his market value had slumped to £22m - the lowest since his breakthrough year in 2017/18.
Jadon Sancho speaking to Ten Hag
Sancho's falling out with Ten Hag completely derailed his Old Trafford career
Back in the Bundesliga, Sancho experienced a partial revival that hinted at the player United had hoped to sign. He notched three goals and three assists across 21 appearances and was instrumental in Dortmund's run to the Champions League final, where they fell short against Real Madrid.
His standout semi-final performance against Paris Saint-Germain earned praise from Ten Hag himself, who noted it as validation of United's original investment. This spell not only restored some of his confidence but also stabilised his market value temporarily, offering a glimmer of hope amid the turmoil.
That optimism proved short-lived, however, as Sancho's 2024/25 loan to Chelsea turned into another chapter of underachievement. Arriving on deadline day with an obligation-to-buy clause worth around £25m, he struggled for consistency in a crowded attacking unit under Enzo Maresca.
Over the course of the season, Sancho scored just three league goals and looked a shadow of the player who had lit up the Bundesliga years before. Chelsea, disillusioned with his output, opted to pay a £5m termination fee rather than trigger the permanent deal.
Sancho in action for Chelsea
Jadon Sancho's spell at Chelsea was underwhelming
Now embarking on his third consecutive loan spell, this time at Aston Villa, Sancho's valuation remains depressed at approximately £24m - barely a third of what United paid four years ago. The Red Devils are still paying part of his wages, and will hope that a productive spell at Villa Park either paves the way for a permanent exit or rekindles the prospect of reintegration.
Either way, Sancho's career serves as a cautionary tale of unfulfilled promise in modern football, where hype and hefty fees can crumble under pressure. But talent like his typically doesn't vanish overnight - it simmers, waiting for the right spark.
Perhaps at Villa, under Unai Emery's guidance, Sancho can finally halt the decline, restore his value, and remind everyone why he was once considered one of Europe's brightest prospects.