Starting against PSG on Wednesday in the semi-final first leg of the Champions League semi-final (1-0), Jadon Sancho sublimated Borussia Dortmund’s play. The accelerations, feints and hooks of the English winger made Nuno Mendes, in great difficulty in his lane, dizzy.
It only takes one evening to revive a flagging career, especially when a player has the talent of Jadon Sancho. Sidelined at Manchester United where he only played three Premier League games this season (before being sidelined due to a conflict with his coach Erik ten Hag), the English winger chose to return to Borussia Dortmund during the winter transfer window. A profitable choice for the 24-year-old player, who is finding color in the club where he revealed himself between 2017 and 2021.
Positioned in a right winger role against PSG, Sancho delivered an impressive score, certainly giving regret to Manchester United fans, who saw too little of him at this level. Symbol of his XXL match, the England international completed twelve dribbles, one more than… all the PSG players combined. Most of them were successful at the expense of a totally overwhelmed Nuno Mendes, who showed big defensive gaps in his lane. Sancho was also valuable in his ability to keep the ball and resist the pressure of the Parisians.
“I’m giving everything I have here.”
The former Mancunian could even have boosted his statistics with an assist for Füllkrug shortly before the hour mark, but the only scorer of the game missed the target and the opportunity to make the break. At the end of the match, the Englishman also slipped a caviar to Brandt, whose shot was saved at the last minute by Marquinhos.
His full match was congratulated by Thierry Henry, consultant for CBS Sport: “I think it was an excellent choice for him to be loaned there, where he knows that the spotlight might not be on him too much at the very beginning. He needed to get back to a certain level of performance , to play matches, to have minutes of play. When you are mentally well, you can perform (…) What he did today, wow.”
Borussia wants to keep him
Jadon Sancho is currently on loan at Borussia until the end of the season and does not yet know what his future holds. If he said he was “delighted” by his performance after the game, the Englishman is keen to finish the job at the Parc des Princes, next Tuesday during the semi-final return “It’s not finished, we have to go to Paris and I hope to get the job done there (… ) I’m giving everything I have here.” According to the journalist Fabrizio Romano, the Germans want to keep the player next season. Discussions will take place with Manchester United even if the file promises to be difficult.
