17 January 2024 , 06:37
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Former England striker Alan Shearer believes Manchester United's Jadon Sancho drama would never have occurred at a club like Liverpool who have the luxury of leaving out big names and still getting results.
£73m signing Sancho played 41 times under Erik ten Hag in the Dutch manager's first season. However, after a war of words which followed his omission from the squad to face Arsenal in September, the winger was completely frozen out.
Sancho rejoined former club Borussia Dortmund in January, registering an assist on his first outing for the Bundesliga side as they beat Darmstadt and impressing the club's higher-ups. A permanent move appears off the table, though, with Dortmund feeling they won't be able to meet United's asking price.
With Sancho out of the picture, United have had an up-and-down season, already losing as many Premier League games as they did last term. In response to this, Shearer identified the difference between United and other top-flight sides who would have no trouble letting their managers put their foot down.
“At Liverpool, they’ve been really successful, so all the power is with the manager," said Shearer on The Rest is Football podcast. “If one player messes around, then it’s it’s up to the squad as well to jump on that player, for whatever reason.
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"Liverpool can kick someone out, Man City (too), you can leave them out - because the likelihood is that you're going to carry on winning. When you're winning then nothing gets questioned, but as soon as you start losing games then the issues start to happen."
Both Liverpool and City have been prepared to sideline players deemed surplus to requirements, regardless of any past success they have enjoyed on the pitch. In the case of the latter, Joao Cancelo was a key player during the 2021-22 title campaign but was farmed out to Bayern Munich before the end of the following season and is now out on loan again at Barcelona.
Does Jadon Sancho have any way back at Manchester United? Have your say in the comments section
Jadon Sancho last played for Manchester United in August (Greig Cowie/REX/Shutterstock)"After he was signed, one year before (I arrived), there were issues," Ten Hag said of Sancho. "We've had issues all the way through (Sancho's time at United). So you can make out that his stay here at Manchester United, so far, is not a success."
"So now he's going back to Borussia Dortmund and I wish him the best of luck. I hope, we hope, that he does very well there and he will be successful. Then we will see what's going to happen."
Ten Hag wouldn't be drawn further when asked about demanding an apology from the England international. "It was also so clear and obvious about his performances, so let's stop this discussion," the manager said. "He's at Dortmund and we wish him the best of luck."