•Given Harry Kane has already scored 35 league goals for Bayern Munich this season, Sancho’s new record mark of 40 is not going to last long.
•However, the fact he has achieved it, says a lot about his productivity levels for Dortmund.
Image: FILE
Jadon Sancho reached a significant milestone with his goal for Borussia Dortmund against RB Leipzig at the weekend.
It meant he overtook Tony Woodcock as the most prolific Englishman to play in the Bundesliga.
Given Harry Kane has already scored 35 league goals for Bayern Munich this season, Sancho’s new record mark of 40 is not going to last long.
However, the fact he has achieved it, says a lot about his productivity levels for Dortmund.
Sancho’s three goals in 16 appearances in his second spell at the club, on loan, is an improvement on the 12 in 82 he managed at Manchester United.
By common consent, Sancho is yet to reach the same levels since his return to the club that prompted United to pay £73m for the 24-year-old in 2021. But he is more content.
When Sancho walked back into the club’s training ground and said 'It’s like coming home', they were not just words. It is something the England international feels as if a weight has been lifted off his shoulders.
English representation in the Champions League semi-finals has focused on the Kane-Jude Bellingham battle.
However, Sancho, having not featured in United’s dreadful campaign that ended with group-stage elimination at the hands of Bayern and FC Copenhagen, also finds himself attempting to follow Steve McManaman for Real Madrid in 2002 as the last Englishman to play in the Champions League final for an overseas club.
Dortmund host French champions Paris St-Germain on Wednesday in the first leg of their semi-final, hoping to reach the final for the first time since 2013. Sancho’s media engagements have been strictly limited since his return to Germany.
Requests for interviews tend to be rejected because he is still a United player. More likely it is because of what triggered his United exit.
Upon hearing after a defeat at Arsenal in September that Erik ten Hag said Sancho had been left out of his matchday squad due to his performances in training, the winger hit back on social media.
He claimed he was being made “a scapegoat” by his manager. “Please don’t believe everything you read,” he added. “I will not allow people to say things that are completely untrue.”
Ten Hag demanded an apology. While the social media post came down, the apology never followed.
Asked to reflect on Sancho reaching the Champions League semi-finals following their last eight win over Atletico Madrid, Ten Hag declared: “We know Jadon Sancho is a fantastic footballer, that is not a surprise for us. That is not the issue.”
Yet the idea this reflects badly on Sancho’s personality does not stack up.
He is popular in the Dortmund dressing room. Away from the pitch he is courteous, friendly and generous with his time, as evidenced by a recent chance meeting at a local hotel with a family he knew from Dortmund the first time around.
Sancho was delighted to see the family again. He remembered who they were, even the stepson, who was only visiting Germany from his current base in Brazil.
The experience was genuine. The hugs that accompanied the greeting were warm and genuine.
Sancho gave the impression of being in an environment he feels comfortable with. The perception of him being awkward and stubborn does not match the reality.