Jadon Sancho is being offered for sale by Man United for around £40 million but currently no partner has agreed. Juventus is the team closest to the English striker but there is no sign of a breakthrough at the negotiation table.
Juventus have 2 options for the winger position, in addition to Man United's Sancho, the other being Nico Gonzalez (Fiorentina). Earlier this year, when Sancho was involved in a scandal with Ten Hag, Juve had intended to bring the star to the Allianz. However, the "Old Lady" captain at that time, Max Allegri, thought that Sancho would not fit the 3-5-2 formation he had built. Therefore, Sancho returned to BVB.
When the Old Lady changed coaches, the club's sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli liked the prospect of Sancho appearing in a white and black striped shirt. Giuntoli is pushing for plans to buy Man United's star installment to add to the squad of new captain Thiago Motta.
At his new club, Motta really likes a 4-2-3-1 formation, especially after the opening match with an easy win over rookie Como with a score of 3-0. The young attacking trio of Timothy Weah (24 years old), Kenan Yildiz (19 years old) and Samuel Mbangula (20 years old) played very well behind striker Dusan Vlahovic. During his two years working at Bologna, Motta loved to build teams along the vertical axis and needed someone who was good enough to hold the ball in front of the opponent's penalty area.
Last season, Motta had Joshua Zirkzee (a rookie of Man United) take charge of this role. Despite holding the ball well, Zirkzee is still a center forward so he cannot stand in the penalty area forever. Therefore, a person who can play as a "number 10" as Jadon Sancho would be the right choice. During his appearances for the England team, Sancho also tried this position and the results were quite positive.
In the current Juventus squad, especially in attack, not many people have experience playing in the Champions League like Sancho. Last season, the English striker reached the final with BVB and only lost to the mighty Real Madrid. To regain their position in the European playground, Juventus need players with Sancho's level or higher.
Unlike last season, this time Man United just wants to sell Sancho away and not lend. The "Red Devils" are very hesitant about the Premier League's profit-making and sustainability rules (PSR) so they want to end it. In addition, they are rushing to complete the Manuel Ugarte deal from PSG. If Sancho leaves the team, the gap in salary funds will be opened and from there, Ugarte's chance will be more certain.
In the opening match of the season against Fulham, Ten Hag did not name Sancho because the star had an ear injury. According to The Athletic, a person within the "Red Devils" revealed that the English striker was not satisfied and once again expressed his intention to leave. Sancho has reintegrated into the dressing room, but that does not mean much at this time.
When asked about Sancho's chance to play in the match against Brighton tonight (September 24), Ten Hag said he hoped that after September 1 (the transfer market closed), Man United would own a squad with 2 personnel for 1 position. The Dutch captain shared that this does not mean that everyone has the opportunity to play throughout the season, but it is still very necessary.
Ten Hag also stressed that choosing such a lineup could be disappointing for many players, but that was the fact that they had to face it to compete for a position. The 53-year-old coach said that the ultimate goal is to achieve by May 2025 and the whole team must have high motivation to pursue.
