Jadon Sancho is keen to head back to Borussia Dortmund for a third spell with the German club in a bid to revive his career - but he will have to accept lower wages in order to do so
Jadon Sancho
Jadon Sancho will leave Manchester United for good in June
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Jadon Sancho must accept a significant wage drop to rejoin Borussia Dortmund this summer - even as a free agent.
Sancho will leave Manchester United as a free agent in June when his current deal expires after an extremely disappointing and underwhelming stint at Old Trafford, during which time he has been dumped out on loan three times. He is currently in and out of the Aston Villa team under Unai Emery.
A host of clubs have expressed interest in signing the former England winger. But it's understood that Dortmund are leading the race to sign the 26-year-old.
Sancho produced some of the best football of his career during his two spells with the Bundesliga outfit, and is keen to go back to Dortmund, where he emerged as one of Europe's brightest young talents after quitting Manchester City as a teenager.
But Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke has made it known to Sancho that they simply cannot match the current £250,000-a-week he earns in English football - and he will have to accept a £100k-a-week pay cut in order to land a return to the Westfalenstadion.
Whether Sancho is willing to take £150k-a-week to return to Dortmund - who barring a late season disaster will be in next term's Champions League again - remains to be seen.
Sancho is desperate to head to Europe in the hope of reigniting his flagging career having failed to hit anything like the heights expected when he joined United in 2021 for £73million.
He was expected to have a huge role in helping United challenge for big trophies again, but his switch has been little short of a nightmare for all parties.
At the start of the 2023/24 season he was banned from training with the United squad following a public bust-up with then boss Erik ten Hag, ultimately returning to Dortmund on loan in the January transfer window and helping them reach the Champions League final.
He didn't get a permanent move then and despite clearing the air with Ten Hag, was allowed to join Chelsea on a season-long loan, with an obligation to purchase. Instead, come the end of the campaign, Chelsea paid United a termination fee to ensure they didn't have to sign him permanently and sent him back to Old Trafford.
But he failed to impress Ruben Amorim, and went on loan again at the start of this season to Aston Villa, where he has also failed to make an impact.
Now Sancho, who has won 23 England caps and was part of the squad that reached the final of the Euros in 2021, believes a fresh start in the familiar environment of Dortmund will help him rediscover his best form and love of the game again.
He has not played for the Three Lions since October of the same year.