Why Jadon Sancho struggled at Manchester United?

Sancho is one of the English talents we have watched in several years as he shone from 17 at Borussia Dortmund.

The Germans always shop for the best youngsters at Premier League clubs, thanks to their tradition of always giving youngsters chances.

Sancho was clearly a talented boy at Manchester City, but the Citizens could not afford to give him the chance to play often.

City had him in their group, but they often invested in other top players from across the world, believing that the Englishman was not ready for regular action just yet.

Sancho, on the other hand, felt the time had come for him to play regular first-team football and pushed to move to Dortmund.

BVB has a longstanding reputation as a good home for young players who wish to develop and get first-team chances as quickly as possible.

The Germans paid £8 million to sign him as a cheap replacement for Ousmane Dembele, who had forced through a move to Barcelona.

Sancho was promised he would replace the Frenchman, and BVB kept their word. He was added to their first team immediately after arriving.

This would become the start of an impressive stint for the youngster who began to make a name for himself on Dortmund's books.

The Germans could quickly see that they had unlocked another jewel as Sancho dazzled, scored goals, provided assists and won several league-wide awards for his performances.

Back in England, Premier League clubs wondered why their scouts did not recommend such an impressive player for the team to sign.

Sancho continued to make progress at Dortmund and became the most important attacker at the German club, making teams back home to show interest in his signature.

Most neutrals knew Dortmund was just a stepping stone for the youngster, and he would eventually leave them to move to a bigger club or return to the Premier League.

Ahead of the 2021/2022 season, Manchester United won the race for his signature and signed the winger as their latest big-money buy for £73m.

Sancho was expected to set Old Trafford on fire, but he found life tough in the Premier League and was a much different player from the one we fell in love with at Dortmund.

The Englishman worked under at least three managers and fell out with Erik Ten Hag, who was not impressed by his work rate and publicly threw the attacker under the bus.

This caused a public falling out between him and the winger, who will return to Borussia Dortmund on loan at the start of 2024.

Sancho has been in terrific form at BVB since his return to the Yellow Wall, and the Germans want to keep him.

He feels more at home and has just delivered a terrific performance against PSG in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final. What went wrong for him at Manchester United?

Too much expectations

Sancho moved to Manchester United as one of the game's biggest stars, even though he was just 21 at the time of the transfer.

At 17, he was already proving to be a big talent, and he met expectations brilliantly while playing for BVB.

For years, United has struggled behind Liverpool and Manchester City, so the attacker was expected to change that and make them at least as competitive as the other two clubs.

In his last season playing for Borussia Dortmund tickets buyers, Sancho scored 16 goals and provided 20 assists for the Germans, numbers that lured United to sign him.

The Red Devils were convinced that if he could produce those numbers for their team, success would be inevitable, so there was much expectation on the attacker when he first moved to the club.

This did not help Sancho, especially as United fans are impatient, and his 5 goals and 3 assists from 38 matches in his first season in England was a poor start.

Lack of trust from his manager

Sancho enjoyed working under Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, who had no choice but to trust the attacker because he pushed for the signing.

While Sancho struggled on the pitch, he shielded the attacker and did his best to help him return to top form.

However, the attacker did not impress Erik Ten Hag with his attitude and application as soon as the Dutchman arrived at the club.

Ten Hag had come from a successful Ajax team, which he built on discipline, and he believed that Sancho was simply not disciplined enough to be trusted by the team.

The Englishman was not meeting expectations in training, and he tried to help Sancho reach his best levels, but Sancho was not making progress.

This caused their public fallout, with the attacker feeling his manager did not offer him enough support in the face of mounting pressure and public criticism.

This lack of trust is perhaps the biggest reason their relationship was strained, and the attacker failed to make progress in this campaign and was shipped to BVB.

Too much pressure

Pressure is a part of football, and a key to success in the sport is to work well under pressure and thrive.

Clubs like Real Madrid have dominated club football because their old and new players are able to work under pressure and thrive.

Sancho was enjoying life at Dortmund, and he was the star of the team, so he did not feel much pressure as he naturally was doing well.

When he moved to United, it was a different ball game because there were a lot of expectations placed on his shoulders.

The Englishman was placed under a lot of pressure to perform because United had been crying out for a top player to deliver them from their misery.

Sancho struggled in the face of this mounting pressure, and it showed in his performance on the pitch, as he did not play with enough freedom to enjoy himself.

Did he have supportive teammates?

No one player can alone help his team win matches and trophies, which is why football is called a team sport.

This means Sancho would only enjoy his time on the pitch if he is surrounded by good players who play as a team.

When he was at Dortmund, he was surrounded by a team of youngsters and experienced players who were in love with him and understood that the team was built around the attacker.

This helped them ensure Sancho succeeded. It also involved playing on the same frequency as the attacker. This way, he knows when to provide an assist and when to expect a pass from teammates to score.

However, at United, he met a team that already had its stars, and no one was willing to adjust for Sancho to become a star man.

He was clearly out of synch with his fellow attackers and other players on the pitch, which affected his productivity.

At Dortmund presently, he can feel the love again from his manager and teammates, which is the reason he is back to enjoying himself as he did during his first spell at the club.

The Premier League is not the Bundesliga

Another reason Sancho struggled at Manchester United is that the Premier League is much different from the Bundesliga.

The German top flight remains one of Europe’s top three leagues, and its teams are doing fantastic work in Europe this season.

However, it is not as tough as the Premier League, and there have been several other cases of players doing well in Germany and struggling in England.

Timo Werner is another good example, and Sancho probably found the English top flight too tough to replicate the performances he delivered at BVB.

Conclusion

Sancho remains a very good player,, and he is proving his worth at Dortmund again, but he will probably have to leave the Premier League to reach his best again.