Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho has admitted that he is only now starting to ‘break free’ following a tough start to life at Old Trafford after his £73m summer transfer.
Sancho’s arrival back in England was a long time coming. United had identified him as a target as early as 2019 but were unwilling to meet Borussia Dortmund’s firm asking price in the summer of 2020. When he finally did make the switch last year, his start was underwhelming.
The England international, who had been billed by some as one of the final pieces in the United jigsaw, found himself in and out of the team in the opening few weeks of the season and often on the bench. It is only since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was sacked that he has started more regularly, while he has begun to justify his price tag more and more in recent weeks.
After only one direct goal involvement in his first 18 Premier League appearances, Sancho has managed four in his last five alone – including a fine goal against former club Manchester City before the team’s collapse in the second half.
“I'm very self-critical,” Sancho told Sky Sport Deutschland. “It certainly [hasn’t been] my best season, but I have learned a lot. A new league, new teammates. I would say that I'm only now really starting to break free. I feel more and more comfortable and happy.”
The 21-year-old admitted that players from rivals Premier League clubs, including Chelsea and Liverpool, were also trying to tempt him to join them instead when he was in the process of considering his next move after Dortmund.
“I met Jesse Lingard, Marcus Rashford, Harry Maguire and Luke Shaw with the national team. They always said: ‘Come to United’,” he explained. “There were also the guys from Chelsea and Liverpool, who all tried to convince me their club, but it only really got serious after Euro 2020.”
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Source : 90min