Jadon Sancho is enduring what is probably the most difficult period of his career thus far as he continues to be in Erik ten Hag’s periphery.
The winger started the season in excellent form but his form took an immediate turn for the worse after he was left out of Gareth Southgate’s final England squad before the World Cup.
That also coincided with Antony joining the club and Marcus Rashford entering the form of his career, making it increasingly difficult for Sancho to nail down a place.
First-team players that did not feature in Qatar were given a short break before returning to Carrington to begin preparations for the resumption of the club season.
But Sancho was not one of those players and instead, he was put on an individual training programme by Ten Hag, which included a camp in the Netherlands.
Having already missed roughly one month of action, Sancho was finally back in training at Carrington earlier this week but now, it is being reported that United will not rush the former Borussia Dortmund star back.
That’s according to the Daily Mail, who say that United are careful with managing his minutes as he nears a comeback. For starters, he is not part of United’s travelling party to London as the Reds face Crystal Palace on Wednesday evening.
Additionally, it’s claimed that Sancho’s inclusion in the matchday squad for this weekend’s mouthwatering showdown at Arsenal would be ‘surprising’.
It’s claimed that United have not set a timeline on Sancho comeback but three upcoming cup games (two against Nottingham Forest and one against Reading) could offer Ten Hag the chance to slowly ease him back into action.
SN’s verdict…
No one knows exactly what Sancho’s state of mind is like right now and it would be unwise to jump to conclusions. The last two months have, undeniably, been tougher on him than anyone else.
On a positive note, Sancho will be returning to a team with their tails wagging and to players in the form of their lives. He will also have to compete with those players.
