Man Utd were given Pep Guardiola warning on Jadon Sancho before transfer

Manchester United may have overlooked Pep Guardiola's cautionary words about Jadon Sancho's mentality when they signed the winger in 2021. Sancho, who came through Manchester City's youth ranks under Guardiola's watchful eye in 2017, never made a senior appearance for the Citizens before moving to Borussia Dortmund in an £8million deal. When quizzed in 2019 on why Sancho was sold rather than given a chance by Guardiola, the 54-year-old responded: "I don't know.

"He didn't want to take this challenge [to fight his way into the first team], this opportunity to discover if he was able to. He decided to go there. So, it's perfect. It's going well and congratulations on what he is doing. He is doing an incredible performance. He did it incredibly well this season. What would have happened this season [at City]? I don't know. Again, with the players, it depends on them and what they do on the pitch."

Despite Guardiola's delight at seeing Sancho thrive in the Bundesliga, his remarks about the winger's willingness to battle for his place might have set alarm bells ringing among managers.

However, Sancho's impressive tally of 50 goals and 64 assists in 137 appearances for Dortmund between 2017 and 2021 was enough to convince United to splash out £73m to bring him to Old Trafford after a lengthy chase.

However, his stint with the Red Devils in the years that followed have been far from smooth sailing.

During his opening two campaigns at Old Trafford, Sancho managed just nine Premier League goals in 55 outings, before heading back to Dortmund after clashing with Erik ten Hag over his training displays.

Following United's 3-1 loss to Arsenal in September 2023 - a fixture Sancho was omitted from the travelling party for - Ten Hag declared: "Jadon, on his performances in training we did not select him. You have to reach a level every day at Manchester United and we can make choices in the front line. So for this game he was not selected."

Sancho, however, was quick to hit back at his manager's comments, claiming he was being made a "scapegoat."

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He posted on social media: "Please don't believe everything you read.

"I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue, I have conducted myself in training very well this week. I believe there are other reasons for this matter which I won't go into, I've been a scapegoat for a long time, which isn't fair!".

"All I want to do is play football with a smile on my face and contribute to the 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!"

After a brief stint back at Dortmund, Sancho made his return to United in the summer of 2024, where he managed to settle his differences with Ten Hag. However, his time at Old Trafford was fleeting, as he soon found himself moving to Chelsea on a season-long loan deal that included a £25m obligation to buy based on performances.

Despite enjoying a somewhat successful spell at Chelsea, the board chose not to exercise their mandatory purchase option, instead opting to pay a £5m penalty to see Sancho return to the north west under the guidance of new manager Ruben Amorim. Yet again, his tenure at Old Trafford was abruptly ended when the Portuguese coach deemed him surplus to requirements.

As a result, Sancho has secured a last-minute transfer to Aston Villa on loan, where he aims to rejuvenate his Premier League career under Unai Emery. With Sancho's contract due to expire next summer, there is no obligation to buy attached to the deal.

However, the United board also holds the option to extend his contract by a year to prevent him from departing the club on a free transfer.