THE MODERN GAME makes a mockery of some of football’s oldest adages.
“There are no trophies handed out in January.”
Wrong.
For some, the January Transfer Window now fills a void in the bleakest of months.
It is a title up for grabs with usually the most desperate vying for the crown.
So of course Manchester United have been big players over the past decade, and the latest saga involving Jadon Sancho is the perfect illustration of a hastily-arranged deal that no one would have even contemplated at the start of the season.
All will now claim victory.
Circumstance, of course, dictates that change in perspective.
His return to Borussia Dortmund on loan from Old Trafford was confirmed by the Bundesliga club in a choreographed social media blitz.
First there was the Michael Jordan-inspired statement.
“I’m back.”
Then there was the personalised video message from the man himself.
“I’m so glad to be back.”
After that came a 24-second montage of a lovely piece of skill, a clever assist and a stunning outside-of-the-foot volley.
Just as the nostalgia endorphins hit the spot for Dortmund’s target audience another picture followed. This one was a mockup of an old Eminem album cover with the player centre stage and the velvet curtains drawn back.
“The Sancho Show.”
“Sancho’s back, tell a friend.”
The staged excitement continued with a clip released of the 23-year-old greeting some new and old teammates in the dressing room at the training ground. There was something almost poignant about him leaning into Marco Reus and burying his head in the German’s chest for a cuddle.
“All smiles,” read the caption of another photo of Sancho in training.
“We are happy that Jadon is finally with us. He had a lot of fun on the training pitch. He is healthy, he has trained a lot in the last few weeks. We will use the session again today and see how far he is,” Dortmund head coach Edin Terzić said on Friday.
Sancho is needed now if they are to qualify for the Champions League.
Sancho’s back, tell a friend 🎤 pic.twitter.com/g1LAgkMi3Y
— Borussia Dortmund (@BlackYellow) January 11, 2024
After losing the Bundesliga title on the final day of the 2022/23 season – when they had a two-point lead over Bayern Munich going into the last game but could only draw 2-2 at home to Mainz – the departure of Jude Bellingham to Real Madrid compounded their woes.
Dortmund are fifth now, have scored 30 goals in 16 games (the fewest of the top five) and are six points adrift of Red Bull Leipzig in fourth.
This is why they have brought Sancho in for the remainder of the season. It is a deal that will cost them a minimum of €3.5 million and see his estimated £200,000-a-week wages at United covered.
Not a bad short-term fix for a player they sold for close to €80m in the summer of 2021.
But needs must for Dortmund and the question is whether their needs actually tally with a player who they have banked on delivering an upturn in results.
Dortmund are in a fight for points to climb up the table yet Sancho spoke about his happiness at the move so he can “play football with a smile on my face.”
Perhaps the change of environment will be conducive to that but it feels as though these are two parties with wildly contrasting priorities.
Sancho is looking to find his rhythm again, understandably so given he has been training and even eating lunch alone at United’s training ground since August.
That falling out with Erik ten Hag, in which he refused to apologise for publicly contradicting the manager’s reasoning for being left out of a squad to face Arsenal and accused the Dutch boss of making him “a scapegoat for a long time” has proven insurmountable.
Sancho has not started a match since the FA Cup final defeat to Manchester City on 3 June.
The last time he played a full 90 minutes was the week before in the last game of the 2022/23 Premier League season.
Dortmund will hope Sancho can keep smiling while still delivering on the pitch.
What happens over the next five months could also prove to be a defining moment for Ten Hag and trust in his judgement.
The jury is already out, given he has had considerable say on a number of transfers that have flopped, but the Sancho situation could prove another form of vindication.
Incidents of the England international’s lateness – also highlighted recently by Nemanja Matic – and poor performance in training have supported the view that Sancho’s character and professionalism are not of the required standard for a club that has been in disarray.
The belief that Ten Hag has at least been able to identify those that need to be rooted out is what most supporters have clung to.
The arrival of INEOS as minority stakeholders at Old Trafford adds another layer of complexity. Once their 25% deal is ratified by the Premier League Jim Ratcliffe is to install trusted figures to reconfigure a failing football infrastructure. Some of that work has already begun.
Should Sancho thrive in a different kind of environment and rediscover the form that excited so many before, it could lead to the first test of INEOS’ trust in Ten Hag given the player will have two years left on his deal and, in theory, will outlast a manager whose contract is up next summer.
Just what path United are on could be determined by the fate of these two men at odds.
