Jadon Sancho ‘banned from mixing with Man Utd teammates’ as Erik ten Hag feud continues
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has reportedly banned Jadon Sancho from eating and mixing with his teammates as part of his first-team banishment.
Sancho was removed from United’s training group in mid-September after he failed to apologise for publicly accusing Ten Hag of making him a “scapegoat”.
The Dutchman had criticised Sancho’s performances during training after leaving him out of United’s squad for the 3-1 defeat at Arsenal, telling reporters: “On his performance on training we didn’t select him. You have to reach the level every day at Manchester United. You can make choices in the front line, so in this game he wasn’t selected.”
23-year-old Sancho has not been seen in a United shirt since, with Ten Hag refusing to welcome Sancho back into the fold until he apologises, in a sincere manner, for his conduct on social media.
According to Daily Mail, Sancho has been issued with a strict set of rules by Ten Hag, which include eating away from his teammates and not being allowed to mix with them at the club’s Carrington training ground. He is training alone and is using facilities shared with United’s academy players.
Ten Hag has said a possible reintegration “depends” on Sancho’s willingness to say sorry for his behaviour, but there has been little sign of the England winger relenting despite the fallout rumbling on for over six weeks.
Reports say Sancho is interested in rejoining former club Borussia Dortmund, who also hold interest in taking him back to the Bundesliga after two years away.
Sancho forged a reputation as one of Europe’s brightest young wingers during a four-year spell in Germany, scoring 38 Bundesliga goals in 104 appearances after opting to leave Manchester City as a 17-year-old.
United agreed to pay Dortmund €85m (£73m) for Sancho in July 2021, after courting his signature for two years, and initially targeted him to fill the void on the right wing. But after spending the majority of his time at BVB on the opposite flank, Sancho soon found himself competing with Marcus Rashford for a starting spot and hasn’t been able to command a regular first-team place.
Sancho has also fallen out of favour with England manager Gareth Southgate, with his international career stalling in the aftermath of the delayed Euro 2020 final – Sancho missed a penalty against Italy in the final at Wembley after coming on as a second-half substitute.