Jadon Sancho will leave Chelsea when his contract expires on June 30 and return to Manchester United, with the Blues required to pay a £5m penalty.
United, who signed Sancho for £73m from Borussia Dortmund in 2021, have said they are happy for the 25-year-old to leave the club.
The England forward moved to Stamford Bridge on loan after falling out with former United manager Erik ten Hag.
But Chelsea, having agreed an obligation to buy the player if they finished higher than 14th in the Premier League, which they did, meant they had to pay to get out of the deal.
This means United will now receive £5m from Chelsea and Sancho, who was being paid around half of his £300,000 per week wages between both clubs.
He has one year remaining on his United contract but it is unpredictable on whether or not he will stay under Ruben Amorim, or be shipped off for a fee.
Sancho has been impressive for Chelsea this season and scored in the 4-1 Conference League final win over Real Betis, ending the season with five goals and 10 assists in 42 appearances.
Although his contract runs until the end of June, it’s unlikely that Sancho will travel to the United States for this summer’s Club World Cup, which is to be played from June 15 to July 13.
Sancho struggled for form at Manchester United (Photo by Neal Simpson/Allstar/Getty Images)
Sancho struggled for form at Manchester United (Photo by Neal Simpson/Allstar/Getty Images)
‘Redemption or regression’ — where will Sancho go next?
Sancho has had a turbulent time at Chelsea but this season specifically has been full of thrilling moments.
The 25-year-old came off the bench in September when Chelsea faced Bournemouth, where he set up the winning goal and soon topped that by scoring a crucial goal in Chelsea’s Conference League triumph over Betis in Poland.
He has, however, struggled for form during his loan spell, with rare moments of quality showing what the forward has to offer.
With a move for Alejandro Garnacho possible this summer after the Argentina international and Amorim’s relationship broke down, Sancho could find a place in the left-sided No10 role in the manager’s 3-4-3 system.
Still, Sancho would need to impress in training given new signing Matheus Cunha, who joined from Woleverhampton Wanderers for £62.5m over the weekend, would potentially be a replacement for Garnacho on the left, according to Opta.
Another departure for Sancho would likely see him leave England too after a few unsuccessful spells in his homeland.
Sancho started his career in Watford’s youth project before moving to Manchester City for two years until 2017.
Borussia Dortmund swooped the youngster before United purchased - since then, he has struggled to fulfill his potential.