![Prost International [PINT]](https://prostinternational.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/PINTtFontLogoRoboto1536x78.jpg)
Manchester United’s first reported interest in Jadon Sancho appeared in July 2017 – over three years and 11 months later, the 21-year-old is set to join the Red Devils ahead of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s most critical season as United boss.
According to David Ornstein of The Athletic, United and Sancho will now finalise personal terms ahead of a medical to complete the move after a deal was agreed in principle on Wednesday evening – putting pen to paper on a five-year contract until 2026.
Manchester United haven’t found a natural, consistent right-winger since the departure of Nani in 2014, initially on loan, but it finally appears they have got their man to fill the void.
Many have tried, but failed to secure the right-wing spot at Old Trafford, in the footsteps of household names such as Andrei Kanchelskis, David Beckham and George Best.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo’s departure to Real Madrid in 2009, the likes of Nani, Antonio Valencia, Ji Sung Park and Gabriel Obertan were used on the right-flank by Sir Alex Ferguson, but of course none could impact a game like one of the greatest players football has ever seen.
Ferguson was best known for his elite man-management during his 26 year-era at Old Trafford, and executed just that to perfection when rotating Valencia and Nani on the right.
However, David Moyes’ arrival following Sir Alex’s retirement saw Nani take up a role on the left, in rotation with Ashley Young, while Valencia occupied the right – but this was to be short-lived as the Scotsman’s later dismissal meant new roles for both players.
Moyes, initially deemed ‘The Chosen One’ by some supporters, couldn’t replicate Ferguson’s Premier League success with the pair in 2011 and 2013 respectively with Nani and Valencia on the left and right-wing – but as the pair began to slow down, Nani moved on to Sporting Lisbon while Valencia dropped to full-back and became one of the world’s best in his position.
Louis van Gaal stepped in place of Moyes after a promising World Cup campaign in 2014 managing the Netherlands, and used Juan Mata, a natural number ten, on the right-hand side.
Shunted out to the right-wing in the prime years of his career, one can only think of what Mata could have achieved at Old Trafford in an central role – but that’s not to say his tenure at United was a disappointment as he was always one of the team’s most consistent performers, despite how much potential was wasted.
A favourite of Van Gaal’s, Mata inspired United to an FA Cup victory in 2016 against Crystal Palace after an 81st minute equaliser forced the tie to extra-time – when Jesse Lingard went on to net one of the most famous winners in Red Devils’ history.
Mata spent over two seasons under Van Gaal’s successor Jose Mourinho in the same position for the majority of the Portuguese’s tenure, where United won three trophies (Community Shield, EFL Cup, Europa League) and was occasionally rotated for Marcus Rashford, Young or Lingard.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan joined the list of yet another right-winger/number ten that couldn’t quite grasp a career at Manchester United, arriving from Borussia Dortmund in 2016 for a £30m price tag – which included some crucial goals along the way, most notably in United’s 2-0 Europa League Final win over Ajax in 2017.
Following a breakdown of trust between Mourinho and the player, Mkhitaryan was used in a January window swap deal to bring Arsenal’s Alexis Sanchez to Old Trafford, and the Armenian going the other way.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed Manchester United boss in December 2018 and used the likes of Mata and Lingard on the right for the remainder of the 2018/19 season, despite both players’ strongest positions being behind the striker in an advanced midfield role.
The 2019/20 season saw the introduction of one of football’s hottest prospects – Mason Greenwood, who occasionally spent time on the right despite playing as a sole number nine throughout his youth career. As expected though, an out-of-position Greenwood still proved to outmatch most wingers.
Andreas Pereira was deployed on the right-wing by Solskjaer to begin the season, but failed to impress on numerous occasions and new signing Daniel James from Swansea City was given the opportunity of a lifetime.
James, a £20m signing, got off to a flying start to his Old Trafford career but it soon became apparent that a rotational squad role would better suit the Welsh international for the foreseeable future, continuing United’s everlasting search for the missing link.
Manchester United’s post-restart form in 2020 was hugely attributed to Greenwood’s impressive right-wing performances as the wonderkid netted six goals in seven appearances, helping Solskjaer’s side secure Champions League football when shortly before that feat wasn’t considered achievable.
Greenwood missed several periods of the 2020/21 season due to injury, and Mata filled in when necessary – but the lack of depth further highlighted United’s need to explore the transfer market.
The 19-year-old struggled for a large part of the campaign, and it was slowly starting to appear that next year he could be more useful as a backup to striker Edinson Cavani – instead of a starting right-winger.
Daniel James proved a viable squad option with solid displays throughout 2021, but left much to be desired in terms of starting quality. Paul Pogba’s new role on the left-wing forced Marcus Rashford out to the right, which couldn’t have been more uncomfortable for the nation’s hero.
Finally, after eight years of disappointment and misfits, it seems Manchester United have their next-generation right-winger in Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund.
In the last two seasons for Dortmund, Sancho has tallied 27 assists – recording the fourth highest in Europe’s top five leagues behind footballing royalty Lionel Messi, Kevin De Bruyne and Thomas Muller.
Only Barcelona duo Messi and Ousmane Dembele have attempted more passes in the attacking third over the last two seasons, with Sancho completing 29.17 passes in that area per 90 minutes.
If these ridiculous numbers weren’t enough, in Sancho’s 2019/20 campaign, the winger was involved in 1.26 goal creating actions per 90 minutes behind only Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez.
In 137 games for the German giants, the 21-year-old racked up 50 goals and 64 assists – leaving Manchester United supporters across the globe desperate to finally see their man pull on the famous threads, and step out in front of 75,000 roaring reds at the Theatre of Dreams.
