It is not a secret that Jadon Sancho did not hit the ground running in his first year at Manchester United.
When noting the managerial issues at the club, the poor performances shown by the team, and the lack of players on the same wavelength as him within the squad over the last season, it does not come as a surprise that he did not flourish no matter what changes were made to the line-up.
The 22-year-old was brought in from Borussia Dortmund to solve the long-term issues that the side have been having down the right flank.
However, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer spent half a season utilising him on the left wing, without providing him the needed support in this role, which is something that Michael Carrick and Ralf Rangnick intelligently picked up on during their managerial time at the club.
Left-back Luke Shaw had a below-par season and was not helping the team on both sides of the pitch, and Cristiano Ronaldo’s knack to drop deep or to the left wing to achieve ball time was hindering Sancho’s influence in possession and the side’s ability to attack quickly.
This resulted in the winger being marked by two to three players, with no instructive assistance from his team-mates.
On top of that, United have played attacking football through quick moments rather than through a calm and patient manner.
This does not help a player like Sancho, an elite playmaker who wants to wait for openings to arise in the final third of the pitch, whether it’s by timing a pass just seconds after the defence have failed to keep shape or by making the full backs commit towards him down the touchline.
He has the capability of producing 3-5 big chances per game in the right system.
His style of play is more unique compared to someone like Marcus Rashford. The former has had a childhood of playing cage football, which has helped him to become the technically secure player that he is today.
Bringing in a tennis reference into the comparison of the duo, Sancho is a hard-court player, someone who is very agile, full of trickery and possesses different types of skills.
Then you have Rashford, a clay court specialist, an individual who thrives through his power, who can go the long distance and play in straight lines, but his weaknesses would be shown in his net game, due to his lack of technical ability for the short rallies and a lack of ability to react to quick fire moments.
Despite a frustrating year during the 2021/22 season, playing under three different coaches, the talented winger from Camberwell, South London, was ticking the right boxes statistically.
He was in the 95th percentile for progressive carries, in the 96th percentile for carries into the final third, and in the 99th percentile for nutmegs completed, when compared to the rest of the attacking midfielders and wingers across the top five leagues in Europe, showing that the best is yet to truly come from him.
Now, under a new manager in Erik ten Hag, Sancho is expected to be the side’s best player throughout the 2022/23 campaign.
The England international has already shown positive signs during the pre-season fixtures, forming a rising relationship with Anthony Martial and Diogo Dalot, which has allowed him to play to his strengths and remain influential on the game, as both players have provided the ideal link-up play and movement on and off the ball, to complement one another.
The former Ajax and Utrecht manager has a tactical setup which consists of dominating possession and a lot of attacking movement in the final third of the pitch.
This is something that United were embarrassingly lacking last season, which prevented Sancho from being an instant impact and resulted in the side to play football at a slow pace and in a predictable manner.
Ten Hag’s presence at Old Trafford will provide the environment that Sancho needs, to thrive to a world class level.
United supporters have already witnessed a lot of off-ball movement from the players so far this pre-season, with the likes of Dalot, Bruno Fernandes and Scott McTominay making the necessary runs when the ball is about to reach into the feet of Sancho.
This allows the receiver, to either make an instant pass into the player who is making the run or use the player who is making the run as a decoy, and dribble the ball into the other direction, to successfully catch the opposition off guard.
Another feature to Sancho’s game, is his ability to switch to the left wing in and out of games, which resulted in him scoring his goal against Liverpool in the recent friendly fixture.
This helps Ten Hag and United in the long run, especially if Rashford is to pick up an injury or suspension, Sancho can adapt to the opposite flank without having to change his style of play.
He could build a dominant partnership with Shaw down the left wing, who is currently working to get back to his 2020/21 form.
The line-up for next season will see players selected based on their technical ability and intelligent movement, rather than the big reputation that they carry around at the club.
So, it would not be a surprise to see the likes of Donny van de Beek, Hannibal Mejbri and Tyrell Malacia receiving a lot of game time alongside Sancho, individuals who are confidently competent on both sides of the game.
Overall, within Ten Hag’s style of play and proactive system, Sancho should end the 2022/23 season as the side’s best player.
He is the type of operator that likes to play through consistent combinations, simple and effective patterns, whilst having the ability to be dangerous on either flank.
Should United be successful over the next couple of years, Sancho will be the one to contribute heavily towards it, someone who can produce goals and assists while also getting the best out of everyone.