Thierry Henry has commended Jadon Sancho for overcoming his mental challenges at Manchester United and delivering a standout performance in Borussia Dortmund’s 1-0 triumph over Paris Saint-Germain.
In the Champions League semi-final first leg at Signal Iduna Park, Sancho was a persistent menace to PSG, highlighted by Niclas Fullkrug’s goal in the 36th minute, which gave Dortmund an edge for the return leg in Paris.
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Sancho’s dazzling wing play deserved a second goal for the German striker, who unfortunately sent the ball soaring over from close range, to the PSG supporters’ relief in the vibrant Westfalenstadion.
After a much-publicized transfer from Dortmund to United in 2021, Sancho’s return to the Bundesliga on loan this January was aimed at rejuvenating his career, following a period where his performances for United didn’t meet expectations.
Sancho’s recent form, especially in the match against PSG, has been a powerful testament to the exceptional skills that initially led Manchester United to invest £73 million in him.
Rio Ferdinand, analyzing the match for TNT Sports, praised Sancho’s performance, reflecting on the forward’s inconsistent form in Manchester.
Henry, the iconic former Arsenal forward, also expressed admiration for Sancho’s resilience in bouncing back from the difficulties he experienced at Old Trafford.
‘We all know that he struggled mentally at Manchester United. The power of the brain and how you can be as a professional… when you’re not well here [in the mind], or at home, or whatever it is, you cannot perform. I don’t care where you are or who you are or the talent that you have,’ Henry said on CBS Sports.
‘You can see that things are a bit better up there, whatever the struggle was with him, because to do what he did tonight… I think at Manchester United he played 48 games and only dribbled past a player seven times. He did that in the first ten minutes tonight.
‘All I can say is: don’t underestimate that. Mental health is not an easy thing to deal with and you can see that when someone is well up there then they can perform, so well done, big man.’
According to Henry, Sancho made an ‘amazing’ decision when he chose to complete a temporary move back to Dortmund midway through the season.
‘You need to feel the love, you need to feel that you’re important and you can’t lose your football just like that,’ Henry added.
‘We all know that it happened to me, sometimes when you’re not well you cannot perform on the field, whatever situation you have outside.
‘More often than not we are very critical on guys that don’t perform because you are at a big club and you don’t perform, but you tend to forget about what’s happening outside the field.
‘If that’s not right then you’re not going to perform well and that’s why I think it was an amazing choice for him to go on loan back to Dortmund where he knows maybe that the light wasn’t going to be too much on him at the very beginning.’
‘He needed to go back into a certain performance, going back to playing games, having minutes in his games and you can see what it does.
‘When you have minutes, the balance is right in your head, everything is okay outside of the field, you’re okay mentally, then you can perform. What he did today… wow!’
