Jadon Sancho’s last appearance in a competitive match before last Saturday the 13th was in late August. Since then, Sancho has been publicly criticized by his manager for his effort in training. Sancho was quick to respond…on Twitter/X.
Sancho’s since deleted post read as such: “Please don’t believe everything you read! I will not allow people to say things that is completely untrue. I have conducted myself in training very well this week.”
Battle lines were drawn. It never ends well for a player to publicly attack their manager. Could Manchester United manager Erik Ten Hag have answered the question differently? Yes. However, his team had just lost a frustrating game against rivals Arsenal. We, the public, weren’t at training and didn’t know the whole story.
That occurred at the beginning of September and Sancho never trained with the first team since. Sancho has been demoted, and moving away from the club in the January transfer window seemed likely.
On January 11th, Sancho re-signed with German club Borussia Dortmund (BVB) on a sixth-month loan. In his first stint with BVB, Sancho produced fireworks.
Jadon Sancho and BVB (2017-2021)
Jadon Sancho moved to BVB in the summer of 2017. He had refused to continue to sit in Manchester City’s academy and not get any first-team soccer. He only made twelve appearances in the Bundesliga in his first season at Dortmund.
In his next season (2018-19), Sancho took off. Producing 12 goals and 18 assists in 34 games in the Bundesliga. It was clear by this point that Sancho, who was only 19 years old, was one of the more promising young players in the world.
Many believed Sancho could achieve a rare 20-goal, 20-assist season. Only two players have achieved this feat in a league season this century: Thierry Henry and Lionel Messi.
To be mentioned in such rarified air showed just how much Sancho had risen and how people felt about him at that point.
Sancho’s 2019-2020 Season
Jadon Sancho “only” ended up with 17 goals and 17 assists in the Bundesliga campaign that stopped due to Covid-19. It ended up resuming and was the first sport on during the pandemic. Sancho was still electric. Combining with teammate Erling Haaland, BVB looked formidable but still ended up finishing 13 points behind Bayern Munich. Bayern spent more than 100 million euros on their squad than BVB did.
By this time, Sancho had attracted strong interest from Manchester United. However, BVB didn’t want to let him go and believed that pairing him, Haaland, and new signing Jude Bellingham could lead to BVB’s first title in nine years.
Sancho agreed to give them one more year, despite already agreeing to personal terms with Manchester United.
Unfortunately, Dortmund fell short by 14 points and finished third. Despite this poor league campaign they did end up winning the DFB Pokal, which is the German cup competition. He scored twice in what many thought would be his last-ever appearance for Dortmund.
Jadon Sancho tallied only eight goals and 12 assists in 26 appearances in his final Bundesliga season with BVB.
Jadon Sancho and Man United (2021-January 2024)
To understand Jadon Sancho’s career at Man United, one must understand what happened in the summer right before he joined. Sancho was part of England’s 2020* (the tournament was held in the summer of 2021 due to COVID-19 in 2020) European Championship run to the final. In that final, Sancho was one of three players who missed in the penalty shootout. This could’ve been England’s first international trophy since 1966.
All three players who missed were black and under the age of 24. Subsequent racist abuse was levied against them online through social media.
Sancho dealt with mental health issues that could’ve been related to the abuse. Sancho didn’t get off to a strong start either with Man United which could’ve compounded his situation even more. Sancho looked like a shell of himself only registering three goals and three assists in his first season in the Premier League.
Sancho has been in the pressure cooker that is Man United, where every new signing is hailed as a savior. Sancho has spent time under three managers, with different styles of coaching and discipline. Some have labeled Sancho a flop due to his lack of form compared to what he demonstrated at Dortmund. Others have said he is another example of the Bundesliga tax.
Sancho’s Second Stint With BVB
Sancho’s return to Dortmund looks a bit different this time around and a bit similar. He has a manager, Edin Terzic who was his coach at the back half of his final year in Dortmund. He doesn’t have Erling Haaland, who he combined with so well. He does have club captain Marco Reus who he played well with too.
Sancho called Dortmund “home,” upon his return. He was handed the number 10 shirt too. It is extremely unlikely that Sancho will be a Dortmund player when his loan move expires in June. BVB doesn’t have the money in either a transfer fee or wages to cover a permanent Sancho move.
So, this means that Sancho now has exactly 17 Bundesliga games to prove to the world that he isn’t the alleged lazy player some fans have made him out to be. He already started last Saturday with an assist after coming on in the 55th minute.
Sancho is a joyful player to watch. He has insane close control that makes it look like the ball is sticking to his feet. His eye for a pass is also elite. BVB has dubbed him “King of Assists” on their official YouTube page.
Sancho was incredible at Dortmund his first time around on the break. Due to the Bundesliga playing high defensive lines, there is a lot of space for the team behind the defense. Sancho is great when he is running at defenders on the break and teammates are making runs for him toward goal. Think Steve Nash running the Suns fastbreak.
How He Will Fit at BVB
BVB manager Edin Terzic employs either a 4-3-3, 4-2-3-1, or a 4-1-4-1. Terzic opts for Niclas Fullkrug in the lone stiker role. The wing players are being rotated throughout the season, but I expect Sancho to be a starter immediately due to him being more proven than other Dortmund wingers. He will certainly link up with Fullkrug immediately and expect him to improve his five goals this season.
There is no realistic chance for Dortmund to win the title, they are 15 points behind unbeaten Leverkusen. Sancho can help BVB earn the last Champions League spot which Dortmund sits three points behind. Speaking of the Champions League, Dortmund have drawn Dutch side PSV, who have only lost one game in all competitions this season. It will be a tough matchup for sure, but BVB did top a Champions League group with PSG, AC Milan, and Newcastle United.
I expect Jadon Sancho to improve BVB this season drastically. His prior Bundesliga stats speak for themselves and although they won’t win the title, they will be much more fun to watch. Who knows, maybe Sancho will enjoy life in Dortmund so much that he’s able to join BVB this summer on another loan or permanent basis, crazier things have happened.
Featured Image: Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images
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