The past 7 days have been incredibly rough on my part. I came down with an annoying common cold last Sunday, which I had not caught in two years, and I have been nursing myself back to health since.
I took this as an opportunity to take a break from work and posting on my blog, but I couldn't contain myself when I heard that the deal for Jadon Sancho had been sealed.
It has been well over 2 years since Manchester United declared interest in the right winger. In the last transfer window, Dortmund took Manchester United round in circles. They were toying with the club, demanding over 100 Euros for Sancho, setting unreasonable deadlines, and teasing United fans on social media.
It was horrible to experience as a fan knowing how badly we needed the player in the team. How much of an asset would he have been against a well-oiled Villareal defensive blockade in the Europa League final?
He would have been perfect!
Why Jadon Sancho?
For the longest time Manchester United have always been associated with flamboyant wingers. Think Giggs, Ronaldo, Valencia, Luis Nani, and Beckham.
Antonio Valencia was the last of the right wingers at the club.
As his athleticism failed him, he was converted into a right back and since then, various players have been shoe-horned into that right winger position. None of them were very effective.
With the arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, there was a deliberate effort to fill that important position. In this transfer window, it appears Jadon Sancho is the priority signing.
While the shine has been taken off the excitement due to the protracted signing, there is no denying that this represents a major change in how Manchester United will play this season.
What does Sancho bring to the team?
1: πππππππ
If you have been watching Manchester United for a while, the first thing that sticks out is that we have a left-sided bias. All our offensive play is funnelled to the left side of the field through Rashford, which has made it very easy to defend.
You will often hear fans complaining about how we cannot break down teams that sit back. It is a common feature of Man United teams. That is because Marcus Rashford is at his best when he has space to run into.
That is why the signing of Jadon Sancho is important.
He is not a sprinter but a dribbler. He hugs the right wing and once he receives the ball, he either dribbles into the box and attempts a shot or he will try to run to the touchline and put a low cross into the box for the striker.
This will give the team attacking avenues on both sides of the pitch.
2: πΊππππππ πππ ππππππππ
That sounds ridiculous to say, but think about it.
Jadon Sancho will primarily play on the right hand side of this Manchester United team, but he is equally effective on the left.
With Rashford most likely to get surgery done on his shoulder after the Euros, he will miss the first few weeks of the season. Having Jadon Sancho start on the left will help the team cope with Rashford's absence for that period.
Similarly, Sancho can play in the 10.
Bruno Fernandez played 37/38 games in the previous season mainly because nobody was good enough to replace him. Sancho could be that player. If needed, Bruno can get a break once in a while so that he doesn't get burnt out towards the tail end of the season.
4: π·ππππππππ
Finally, Manchester United are getting something they haven't had in a very long time. Longevity!
Our attack line will most likely be one of the youngest in the entirety of Europe's top leagues.
Rashford(23), Greenwood(19), Sancho(21), James(23), Martial(25), and Amad(18) are just some of the enticing talents at the club.
There has been a deliberate attempt by the management to acquire and bring through young quality talent to bolster this squad over the next couple of years. Players like Amad probably need a loan to gather a bit of experience, but the rest of the team, especially Greenwood, are ready to perform in the top-flight regularly.
We are looking at an attack that could be together for the next decade, hopefully winning trophies and getting the club back to where it once was with Solskjaer at the helm of it.
Final Word.
Obviously, the signing of Jadon Sancho is not the final gemstone to complete this Manchester United infinity gauntlet. There are a couple of more glaring holes that must be filled with appropriately shaped pegs if the team is to launch a decisive title challenge.
Some encouraging news suggests that United are in for Raphael Varane, who would undoubtedly go straight into the team next to Maguire, thus relegating Lindeloff to the bench. Most United fans welcome that change wholeheartedly, including myself.
The other is Eduardo Camavinga, whose interest came out of nowhere, and he could be an interesting alternative to Declan Rice.
Personally, I don't get the Rice hype. His game is as plain as 'rice' and he also comes with an English plus Manchester United tax which brings his value close to 100 million Euros. I would say it is not worth it. Not when you have a younger version of him available at 30 million Euros.
I am holding back my excitement at the moment seeing these positive movements. Man United seem to be acting like a big club again. If all these signings are added to that of Jadon Sancho then we are talking about a serious intention to challenge.
I am not saying we are winning the league next season, obviously because Manchester City will strengthen further, but we will be much closer to them this time round.
Maybe that and a Cup are enough for now.
Welcome to Manchester United, Jadon Sancho!