Man Utd: Pundits discuss possible Jadon Sancho transfer
Manchester United will give Jadon Sancho the No 7 shirt made famous by the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, David Beckham, Eric Cantona and George Best, reports say. The Borussia Dortmund star is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s top transfer target. And the Red Devils are close to landing the 20-year-old, ending 18 months of intense speculation in the process.
Manchester United are on the verge of signing Sancho, who is determined to make the move to Old Trafford.
The transfer deal made significant progress on Monday afternoon, with Ed Woodward locked in talks with the Bundesliga giants about their star asset.
United are confident Sancho will be theirs by the end of the week and the 20-year-old is said to be ‘excited’ about the prospect of moving to the club.
And The Sun say the England international will wear the No 7 shirt.
It has been worn by club greats such as Best, Cantona, Beckham and Ronaldo in the past.
Ronaldo was, however, arguably the last big success with the Portugal international propelling them to three straight Premier League titles between 2007 and 2009 - as well as the Champions League crown.
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Since his move to Real Madrid in 2009, players have struggled under the weight of the jersey’s expectancy.
Angel Di Maria was given the number in 2014 but spent just a year at Old Trafford, with Louis van Gaal then flogging him to Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.
After him came Memphis Depay but the Netherlands international fared little better, lasting 18 months before being cut loose to Lyon.
Alexis Sanchez was given the No 7 upon arriving from Arsenal back in January 2018.
But the Chile international was also a flop and is now nearing a move to Inter Milan, having impressed at the San Siro since the restart.
Meanwhile, former United star Gordon Hill has warned about placing too much pressure on Sancho’s shoulders.
“Jadon will come with a price tag, a level of expectation for him to live up to,” he said.
“In the past we have had Angel Di Maria and Memphis Depay to name just two who have come in and were going to be the creative saviour for United on the wing.
“Time and time again we’ve seen players come in for big money and then not perform, and it has generally come at some significant cost for that player to be moved on.
“I hope that won’t happen with Jadon but you will understand my apprehension – that’s not based on his talent, but the expectation that is already going to be put on his shoulders.
“He is clearly the player Ole wants, though, and as I said, he is being careful with his transfer policy – a big reason for us to feel confident.”
United legend Ryan Giggs thinks Sancho would be a worthy acquisition.
The Wales manager said: “Sancho is quick, direct but also an intelligent player.
“What I like about him is when he gets into them areas with the final ball, he doesn’t panic. A lot of quick wide players sometimes do but he picks out the right pass.
“He’s someone who can counter-attack if we’re going to play that but also if a team are going to sit back, he can beat players and make things happen.
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