Sancho made an impressive start to his season-long loan at Stamford Bridge, providing assists in his first three games against Bournemouth, West Ham, and Brighton. ..Continue Reading
However, his absence from Enzo Maresca’s recent matchday squads has raised questions about his form and commitment.
The 24-year-old’s struggles at Manchester United have been a recurring theme since his £72 million move from Borussia Dortmund three years ago.
Chelsea provided a fresh opportunity on the final day of the summer transfer window, signing him on loan with a £25 million obligation to buy, contingent on finishing in the Premier League’s top 14.
Despite his early promise, Sancho’s performances dipped in games against Nottingham Forest and Liverpool, leading to his recent exclusion.
While Maresca has attributed his absence to illness, O’Hara speculates that the issues that hindered his progress at United might now be resurfacing at Chelsea.
“Jadon Sancho’s been given an opportunity at Chelsea to prove people wrong, but it hasn’t happened yet,” O’Hara told Grosvenor Sport.
“Manchester United spent a lot of money on him, and it didn’t work out, so he’s gone to Chelsea and showed signs of brilliance and confidence at the start, but he seems to have fallen back into his old ways since then.”
Erik ten Hag and Jadon Sancho reconciled at the beginning of pre-season, but Manchester United ultimately decided he was no longer needed.
Sancho found himself pushed out, with players like Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Amad, and Antony all favored ahead of him in Ten Hag’s lineup.
Jamie O’Hara suggested that Chelsea’s even fiercer competition for places, compared to Manchester United, has played a significant role in Sancho’s continued absence from the team.
He continued: “I think the problem with Sancho at Chelsea is that there are better players than him in that squad – Pedro Neto and Noni Madueke are more influential than him.
“He needs to try and produce moments when he gets the chance to impress, or he’ll stay where he is in the pecking order.
“It’s always going to be difficult when there’s a big group of attacking players in the same squad, but I think Enzo Maresca has worked out that Sancho isn’t as good as a lot of them.”
Sancho has been pictured back in Chelsea training during the international break.
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