Manchester United forward Jadon Sancho has released a statement disputing the supposed reason why manager Erik ten Hag dropped him against Arsenal over the weekend.
ten Hag‘s side were on the receiving end of a 3-1 defeat against the Gunners on Sunday after what they thought would be the winner was ruled offside and the home team went on to put two late goals past goalkeeper André Onana in the very dying embers of the game.
Moreover, even before the kick-off, there was lots of discussion surrounding the team selection after it was reported that both Sancho and Scott McTominay did not travel with the matchday squad at all despite numerous injuries in several different positions.
Speaking after the full-time whistle, the Dutchman explained that due to “his performance in training we didn’t select him,” adding that “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.” Sancho, however, sees it differently.
Sancho’s statement dismissing ten Hag’s reason for dropping him from the squad entirely.
Issuing a response on X, the Man United and England winger said: “Please don’t believe everything you read! I will not allow people saying things that [are] completely untrue. I have conducted myself in training very well this week.
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The 23-year-old “I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t get into, I’ve been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair!”
Sancho went on to insist, “All I want to do is to play football with a smile on my face and contribute to my team. I respect all decisions that are made by the coaching staff, I play with fantastic players and grateful to do so which I know every week is a challenge. I will continue to fight for this badge no matter what!”
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Sancho has failed to nail down a consistent starting spot in the United XI ever since he joined the club in 2021 and it’s safe to say he has struggled to hit the same heights he showed at Borussia Dortmund. Meanwhile, journalist Fabrizio Romano has since reported that the coaching staff have been unhappy with training levels for some time now.
Ten Hag and some of his #mufc staff have not been happy with Jadon Sancho's level of training. Tensions have been around for the past two to three weeks.
Sancho thinks there is something else and those close to him insist he is doing his best.
With ten Hag also supposedly of the belief that he helped the talented young attacker through a difficult period of form and confidence last season, with Sancho having undergone two months of solo training abroad at the end of 2022, it appears there has been some tension between the two for a few weeks.
All that being said, Sancho did impress many fans during pre-season operating in a new role and did actually score against Arsenal during their friendly back in July, so was understandably frustrated not to have featured in the game.
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While it remains to be seen what substance there is to this apparent rift, both the player and his coach will no doubt be hoping he now feels he has a point to prove and fights his way back into the team.
It wasn’t the only moment of tension surrounding the fixture either as club legend turned pundit Roy Keane was reportedly ‘headbutted’ by an Arsenal fan around full-time and had to be separated by security and Sky Sports colleague Micah Richards. Police are now investigating the incident.
Featured Image — Jadon Sancho/Manchester United (via Instagram)
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Manchester City plotting spending spree ‘before’ Club World Cup
Danny Jones
Manchester City are set to embark on somewhat of a spending spree this summer transfer window as the club’s higher-ups are looking to get business done before the 2025 Club World Cup.
With FIFA’s intercontinental club competition set to get underway in mid-June, the Blues don’t have too long to welcome in new players, but Man City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has reiterated their urgency regarding recruitment.
Despite having brought in four new acquisitions in a very short space of time last season, the 50-year-old argued that he wasn’t completely happy with the extent and speed of their business.
Giving a lengthy interview this week, CFG‘s founding chairman has imposed an internal deadline ahead of the lucrative knockout competition.
Speaking with club media, Khaldoon recognised that while there were incomings in January of this year, he believes they “should have been more aggressive in some of the changes we needed to do, adding that he believes it “cost [them].”
“I can tell you today, we have clearly identified who exactly [the targets are], in what positions, and we have our clear number one option, our clear number two option”, he continues.
More importantly, he goes on to add: “We’ll go about our business, and it will be very clear, very swift. Our objective is to try to be ready with the new squad for the Club World Cup.”
He also suggested the flurry of activity this past January was not just atypical of the administration, but felt the squad fell into a crisis state with the number of injuries, insisting they “had to act.”
City have already been linked with a hugely talented and highly-rated European target in the wake of Kevin De Bruyne‘s departure and a lack of strength in depth in midfield.
An initial bid is said to have been received already and will likely be the first of many City summer signings.
He also insisted that the players who joined last season weren’t scattershot, emergency transfers (perhaps barring the resigning of İlkay Gündoğan) but were the start of the rebuild and “gives [fans] an idea of what’s coming this summer.”
Another player linked with a move to the Etihad Stadium is Lyon star Rayan Cherki, who scored in big moments during their Europa League run this year, registering 32 goal contributions across all competitions throughout the 24/25 campaign.
Who would you like to see added to Pep Guardiola’s side this summer, then, Man City fans?
You can watch Khaldoon Al Mubarak’s interview in full down below:
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Manchester City (press shots)
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Ruben Amorim reacts as Manchester United are booed off after Malaysia friendly
Danny Jones
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim has delivered a fairly brutal response after his club were booed off by supporters during a friendly in Malaysia.
The Red Devils recently embarked on a post-season tour following a calamitous 2024/25 campaign, both domestically and continentally, with that limp loss in the Europa League final, but have already resumed what has become alarmingly normal service with yet another defeat.
Finding themselves on the wrong end of a 1-0 scoreline against ASEAN All-Stars in Kuala Lumpur – a squad comprised of various talents from around the region who had never played together before and were only founded as an actual team back in 2014 – it was all far from clean slates and fresh starts.
In the wake of the shock result, Man United were booed off by the Malaysian and other international fans inside the Bukit Jalil National Stadium, which saw more than 70,000 in attendance.
It’s the end and that’s it. Man United got boo’ed by the fans after the final whistle.
They got beaten by non-full team Asean All-Star who just trained together as a group few days before the match. pic.twitter.com/fBxnMiZPN8
For context, the ASEAN All-Stars had only trained together for the first time just days before the game itself, but the de facto exhibition outfit still managed to break the deadlock in the 71st minute against a United side that rarely looked like scoring.
All that being said, Amorim had some choice words for his own players in his post-match duties after their first post-season tour fixture, insisting that while he always remains accountable, those out on the pitch perhaps received somewhat of a deserved reckoning too.
He began by stating, “I’m always guilty of the performance of the team, no matter what. [I have been responsible] since the first day”, but went on to argue: “The boos from the fans, I think it something that we need, maybe.”
Citing that the Old Trafford faithful and die-hard away fans have always been loyal and supportive despite frustration in the league, he suggested that “maybe they will change the way they behave” following this latest reality check.
Despite adding that he has seen reasons for optimism in performances against Man City and Liverpool, for instance, where he felt he saw “belief” and seeds of what’s to come, he’s made very few excuses for the poor displays up to now.
United face the Hong Kong national team in their next friendly on Friday, 29 May, and it’s fair to say anything less than a win would be beyond bad for the predictably unpredictable Premier League club.
You can see his full post-match press conference down below.
Danny Jones -
4th September 2023 
