Jadon Sancho appears to have deleted his infamous ‘scapegoat’ Tweet after reportedly holding clear-the-air talks with Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag.
With Antony unavailable for the foreseeable future and Mason Greenwood out of sight if not quite out of mind, the £73 million signing from Borussia Dortmund might never have a better chance to jump-start a Manchester United career in dire need of an oil change.
According to The Telegraph, Jadon Sancho was due to hold face-to-face talks with Ten Hag on Monday, with that Tweet likely to be at the forefront of discussions.
And while neither party has spoken publicly on the matter yet, it may be telling that the explosive post which cast serious doubt on the winger’s Manchester United future last week – and which was pinned at the top of his official Twitter page until Tuesday afternoon – is now conspicuous by its absence.
Jadon Sancho deletes ‘scapegoat’ Tweet
“I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue. I’ve conducted myself in training very well this week,” Sancho wrote after that 3-1 defeat to Arsenal, seemingly responding to Ten Hag’s claims that some poor performances on the training pitch were the reason for his absence.
“I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t go into, I’ve been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair! All I want to do is play football with a smile on my face and contribute to my team.
“I respect all decisions that are made by the coaching staff, I play with fantastic players and grateful to do so which I know every week is a challenge.
“I will continue to fight for this badge no matter what.”
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There may be a route back for Sancho
Deleted? Maybe. Forgotten? Not quite yet.
Ten Hag, an iron-fist disciplinarian who singled out Cristiano Ronaldo, Alejandro Garnacho and even Marcus Rashford for punishment since taking over at Old Trafford, will need some convincing that Sancho has the appetite to fight for his place.
Now, with his favoured right-wing spot there for the taking – and with a genuine centre-forward in Rasmus Hojlund to play off – there can surely be no excuses now for a player who’s Old Trafford career can best be summed up by the word ‘underwhelming’.