Manchester United’s manager, Erik ten Hag, and Jadon Sancho engaged in tense discussions during a ‘clear the air’ meeting in September, as disclosed by a recent report.
Sancho, who has now joined Borussia Dortmund on loan until the end of the season, hadn’t played for United since August due to a public dispute with Ten Hag regarding training performances after a 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.
Following the unsuccessful ‘clear the air’ talks, Sancho trained separately from the first team and wasn’t considered for matchday squads, even when other players in his position were unavailable. Ten Hag refrained from making public comments on the matter but mentioned in December that the door remained open for Sancho’s return.
The Athletic has now reported details of the planned ‘clear the air’ meeting during the international break after the Arsenal defeat. Initially granted leave during the break, Sancho, not on international duty with England, attended the meeting at Carrington upon his return.
During the meeting, Ten Hag reportedly showed Sancho videos of the final training session before the Arsenal clash, revealing a practice match between United’s starting XI and a secondary XI mimicking Arsenal’s playing style. The report notes that Ten Hag expressed dissatisfaction with Sancho’s application and pressing during that session, a viewpoint the player disputed.
Further talks were scheduled, during which United reportedly requested Sancho to delete a social media post disputing Ten Hag’s press conference comments about his perceived poor training performances.
Additionally, they wanted a public apology from Sancho to the manager. Despite deleting the social media post, Sancho did not apologize and was not included in another squad until his recent departure for Dortmund.
The prospect of the 23-year-old playing for United under Ten Hag seems highly unlikely at this stage, given the circumstances surrounding their disagreements and Sancho’s subsequent move to Borussia Dortmund on loan.
