Manchester United's squad reportedly harbour serious doubts about Jadon Sancho's potential return, questioning if he has the mettle to meet the club's high standards. Despite having no personal qualms with Sancho, key players believe his performance before being sidelined by Erik ten Hag 18 months ago fell short of expectations.
Currently on loan at Chelsea, 25-year-old Sancho could become a permanent fixture at Stamford Bridge. The Blues are bound to purchase him for between £20million and £25million unless they opt to pay a £5m penalty to avoid the deal.
Sancho's hefty £72.9million transfer from Borussia Dortmund in 2021 looms over United, as they face financial implications under Premier League rules if Chelsea backs out. With his contract expiring next summer and little chance of an extension, United would need to recoup £14.58million to prevent a loss.
United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe recently singled out Sancho among players he deemed "not good enough" or "overpaid". Sancho's struggle for form is evident at Chelsea, where he's rarely completed full matches and hasn't donned the England jersey since September 2021.
The winger faced a wave of mockery back in February for his reaction to Marcus Rashford's loan transfer to Aston Villa from United, posting "Freedom" under Rashford's announcement on Instagram.
Although Erik ten Hag and Sancho did sit down for a peace-making talk during the pre-season period, there has been no hint that Sancho made any apologies for openly slamming Ten Hag last September over claims he lied about reasons for Sancho's squad exclusion for the Arsenal match. According to Ten Hag, it was Sancho's training form that led to his absence.
After spending the latter part of the previous season at his old stomping ground, Borussia Dortmund, on loan, Sancho got game time in four matches of United's pre-season.
However, misfortune struck as he failed to convert his spot-kick during the shootout loss to Manchester City, and then went on to switch jerseys to Chelsea when the transfer window slammed shut in August.
When pressed on speculations regarding Sancho's possible return to Old Trafford, Ruben Amorim tersely dismissed the topic.
"I don't know," was Amorim's curt response to whether Sancho had decided against playing for United again, adding: "I'm just focused on my players and my problems. Sancho is not my problem."
This article first appeared on the Manchester Evening News.