Signed for £75 million in the summer of 2021, 12 months later than initially planned, it is fair to say that Jadon Sancho’s time at Manchester United has been anything but easy.

In his first season, Sancho saw the demise of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was eventually relieved of his duties towards the end of November. In came Ralf Rangnick, who had a completely different style of playing and demands, which caused further turbulence and jeopardy to Sancho’s debut season.

It was fair to write that season off and start fresh for the 22/23 campaign. A new manager in Erik Ten Hag came in with bright ideas and a clear demonstration on how Sancho would be slotted in as a possession-based winger. The Englishman’s most viral clips when at Borussia Dortmund came from cute interchanges between his fellow teammates that resulted in goals and assists.

However, by the Autumn, Ten Hag sent Sancho away to clear his head and to rehabilitate while the World Cup took place. It was clear that Sancho was not in the right headspace to compete at the elite level and needed to work on himself.

In the New Year, Sancho’s performances improved somewhat, but there is a noticeable lack of killer instinct and decisiveness in his wing play. When comparing Sancho to Alejandro Garnacho, Manchester United’s young, 18 year old left winger, there is sizeable difference in their actions in the final third.

The Argentina international is far more deliberate and willing to take on his man, whereas Sancho consistently checks back and plays the safer option. Perhaps it is because he does not want to lose the ball, which is a fair argument, but there is certainly a time and place for a risk to be taken – especially by creative players.

Sancho ended his second season with five goals and three assists in 38 appearances, nowhere near the expected output that has been expected of him since arriving two years ago.

With Garnacho signing a new long term deal at the club, he is expected to put serious pressure on Sancho next season, especially if the latter’s form continues to stagnate.

There have been talks about moving Sancho into midfield as an advanced eight, which was toyed with towards the end of the season, but given the arrival of Mason Mount, it is unlikely that the Englishman has any consistency there.

Sancho has shown glimpses of true excellence at his time at Manchester United, and there is a fair argument to suggest he needs an elite centre forward to work with in forward positions as he had with Erling Haaland, but he needs to show more energy and conviction in his attacking output.

At too many times last season have Manchester United fans seen him labouring through games, appearing uninterested, and being hauled off at around the 65th minute mark.

The Red Devils expect elite wing play from their wide forwards and Sancho will be hoping to repay the faith awarded to him by the fans and manager going into next season.