Despite €70m drop in market value - Sancho may still be the best answer to Man Utd's problems

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There’s little doubt that few players in Europe’s top leagues are having as dreadful a time of it this season as Manchester United winger Jadon Sancho. Not only are his club languishing in tenth place with just four wins from eight games, but the England international is currently powerless to help them as his feud with manager Erik Ten Hag rumbles on. It’s a worst-case scenario from the player and the club that spent €85 million to sign him just two years ago.

Such circumstances have led to Sancho’s market value once again plummeting in the recent Transfermarkt Premier League market value update. The young winger’s market value now stands at just €32m, which means his value has dropped by €70m since he made the move from Borussia Dortmund in 2021. Rather remarkably, he’s also now the Premier League player with the biggest drop in value over the course of 2023 (-€28m) and in seventh place across Europe’s top leagues in terms of players that have lost the most value since 2020. A worrying stat that gets all the more troubling when we bear in mind that of the six players above him, four are over 30 and one has retired.

Man Utd’s major problems in front of goal

Indeed, Sancho’s stock at Old Trafford is at an all-time low, amidst consistent rumours suggesting that the 23-year-old talent could be set to depart the club in the January transfer window. However, while that may seem logical considering his deteriorating relationship with Ten Hag, it’s perhaps worth bearing in mind why the club are in such a mess on the pitch and whether Sancho’s absence could be a major factor in that. In other words, while Sancho may be set to leave Man Utd, he could be the player they’re sorely missing on the pitch this season.

Player Comparison

Bruno Fernandes

Marcus Rashford

Manchester United

Manchester United

€70.00m

Market Value

€60.00m

29

Age

26

Attacking Midfield

Position

Left Winger

Jun 30, 2026

Contract until

Jun 30, 2028

Full Player Comparison

This, undoubtedly, is down to the fact that Man Utd have severely struggled to create goal-scoring chances this season. According to Opta, the club’s open-play xG stands at just 9.23 after eight games. Which places the club ninth among their Premier League rivals and goes some way to explaining why 12 clubs have so far scored more goals in the league than Ten Hag’s team. And while Man Utd may have proven goalscorers like Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes and now Rasmus Højlund to call upon, they’re undoubtedly lacking the playmakers needed to create the chances for their forward players to score.

This is evident when we look at the stats. So far this season only Fernandes ranks in the top 25 for total key passes in the Premier League. Which is in stark contrast to the three Tottenham players, three Liverpool players and two apiece at Arsenal and Manchester City. Not only that, but the Portuguese No.10 currently has twice as many second-placed Diogo Dalot and almost three times as Rashford. This, most certainly, is where Ten Hag’s team miss a player like Sancho.

Sancho v Antony: the ideal winger for Man Utd

While Ten Hag’s side have missed both Sancho and Antony for much of the season thus far, last season’s performances do point to the fact that the Englishman is a far better source of key passes and assists. For example, in the previous league campaign only Fernandes picked up more key passes than Sancho in the entire Man Utd squad. And when we narrow that down to key passes per 90 minutes of league football, Sancho averaged 2.17. Not only is that comfortably the second best in Ten Hag’s squad, but it’s also nearly twice Antony’s average (1.29) and almost three times Rashford’s (0.78).

That should come as no great surprise, considering the fact that both Rashford and Antony are goalscorers first and foremost. But what that means is that when Ten Hag’s front three consists of both players on either wing and a striker in the No.9 position, it often leads to all three players waiting for someone to create the goal scoring chance for them to finish. This is where Man Utd need another playmaker and what Sancho offers that the other two wide players in Ten Hag’s squad simply can’t.

Whether Sancho and Ten Hag can bury the hatchet and find a way beyond the current impasse remains to be seen. But Man Utd’s faults on the pitch and primarily their struggles in front of goal seem likely to continue until they can either get Sancho back in the starting XI and playing regularly, or find a player with a similar style of play to the England international, if he is indeed destined to depart in the January transfer window.