Ten Hag’s ‘special’ starlet could see Sancho binned for good

Manchester United’s start to the season has been a fairly messy one on multiple fronts.

On the pitch, United have made a shaky start to their Premier League campaign. Two unconvincing home wins and two defeats away to continue the side’s woes on their travels have left them in the bottom half of the table going into the international break.

Off the pitch hasn’t been much better either. Delays in the transfers they’ve conducted meant the side rushed to make three signings on deadline day. Frustrations in the fanbase has also continued to build with rumours that the Glazer family are planning to take the club off the market after months of sale negotiations.

Just when supporters thought they may be a break in the drama surrounding the club thanks to the two-week break, they were wrong.

Jadon Sancho, who is yet to start a game this season, came out and criticised manager Erik ten Hag following their late 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.

Why have Sancho and Ten Hag fallen out?

Sancho was conspicuous by his absence after the former Man City academy player was left out of the squad for the trip to the Emirates. His manager revealed after the game that the winger hadn’t been selected “based on performances in training.”

This comment clearly irked Sancho, as he took to social media to dispute these claims.

The Englishman, who joined the Red Devils for £73m, said the following:

“Please don’t believe everything you read! I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue. I have conducted myself very well in training this week.”

Sancho continued by claiming he’s “been made a scapegoat for a long time” and in a possible attempt to appease the Old Trafford faithful by saying “I will continue to fight for this badge no matter what!”

It has since come out that tension has been brewing between player and manager for a long time.

Taking to his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano cleared up a few of the details surrounding this latest saga. “He [Sancho] believes there is something else not related to his training performances and this is why he was not selected.”

“Ten Hag believes that he did his best for Sancho to help him in a difficult a moment last season.”

While the Dutchman may believe he looked after his player when he took a substantial break from the team, it later surfaced that the tension may stem from this.

Sami Mokbel of the Daily Mail reported that Sancho and his camp were unhappy as Manchester United “did not obtain permission to publicly confirm that his mental state was suffering.” However, Ten Hag does not believe he did anything untoward and felt he was supportive of the player through this period.

Sancho’s outburst last week has seemingly not gone down well with his teammates. ESPN states that “the players accept and respect Ten Hag’s firm approach because it applies without exceptions to squad members, regardless of their status, and that Sancho’s reaction has gone down badly within the dressing room.”

How many goals has Sancho scored for Man United?

Sancho has not lived up to expectations since signing in 2021. He has only registered 12 goals and six assists in 82 games.

Last season, the former Dortmund star achieved a Sofascore rating of just 6.85. This was below the likes of Antony, Marcus Rashford and Bruno Fernandes, who all play in similar positions to the England international.

Ten Hag has shown he can be ruthless when players are not behind him. Case in point, Cristiano Ronaldo. It remains to be seen if Sancho receives similar treatment.

If he does though, there may be someone waiting in the wings ready to step up and take his place. That person is Amad Diallo.

When did Amad join Manchester United?

Amad officially signed for the club in January 2021 after a £37m deal was agreed with Atalanta the previous summer.

The winger only made five appearances for the Italian club, scoring once in that time. But his performances in their youth set up was enough to convince the United hierarchy to splash the cash to bring him to the North West on a £29k-per-week deal.

Amad came highly recommended and with a lot of potential. Former Italian goalkeeper Giovanni Galli revealed to Football Italia the moment he first laid eyes on the electric forward.

Translated via the Daily Mail, Galli said “Amad was tremendous. Great technical skills, outstanding personality. They [Amad and his brother] They were on another level.”

He made a bright start to life at his new club, scoring on his Old Trafford debut in a 1-1 draw against AC Milan in the Europa League.

He went on to make a handful of appearances for the club before it was decided he needed more first-team experience in order to develop.

Diallo joined Scottish side Rangers on loan during the 2022 January transfer window. He once again got off to a flyer, scoring on his debut. However, things didn’t continue in that trajectory. He ended up making 13 appearances in all competitions, scoring three times and was not involved in the side’s historic run to the Europa League final.

His lackluster loan spell left people wondering if he was ready to make the step up at a club the size of Manchester United.

A second chance came knocking the following season, and it was an opportunity Amad took with both hands.

How did Amad Diallo do at Sunderland?

The young winger made the loan move to Sunderland last summer and his performances made himself a fan favourite with the Mackems.

With the Black Cats returning to the Championship after a four-year stint in League One, they were looking to make an impact. Diallo helped massively with that. He scored 14 goals and registered four assists as Sunderland managed to make the play-offs.

In the play-offs, Amad showed up in style, scoring a screamer against eventual promotion winners Luton Town.

Sunderland’s number 16 made such an impact with his exhilarating displays, that he was named PFA Fans Championship player of the season. He truly is the “very special” talent that ITV pundit Courtney Sweetman-Kirk suggested.

He had arrived and done enough to convince people that he was ready to move to the next level.

Amad’s Career Stats

What happens next for Amad?

The 21-year-old returned to Manchester following his loan spell and played an important part in the early pre-season games. His energy and direct attacking flair were impressive to see. It showed a player full of confidence following his most productive season of his professional career.

Unfortunately, the attacker’s development was cut short after suffering a knee injury during the club’s tour of the United States.

United confirmed in a club statement that “unfortunately, he has also been ruled out of the first part of the 2023/24 campaign, and we await further details on his estimated recovery date, with the home league clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers up first for Erik ten Hag’s Reds on Monday 14 August.”

It is since believed the youngster has undergone surgery on his injury, which will slow down his recovery.

The problem has not only prevented him from being part of United’s squad in the early season, but has also meant he has missed out on a potential loan deal, with many rumoured suitors pulling their interest.

With the latest developments surrounding Sancho, Amad’s injury may be a blessing in disguise. After all, his trickery down the flanks paints him out as the perfect replacement.