Jadon Sancho is training at 10th-tier Greater Manchester club Flixton FC while searching for a new club after leaving Manchester United. The 26-year-old winger has used the amateur side's facilities for private training sessions to maintain his fitness following the end of his five-year contract at Old Trafford.
Flixton boss Alex Mortimer was pictured alongside Sancho at the ground. The club clarified on Instagram that Sancho was not on trial or involved in transfer discussions, but was simply using their facilities while preparing for the next chapter of his career.
Sancho is taking time to choose his next destination. He has agreements in principle with several clubs in Saudi Arabia and the Middle East, while teams in Europe, including Turkey, are also monitoring his situation.
Early promise at Borussia Dortmund
Sancho warned about the risks facing young players during a 2019 interview on Borussia Dortmund's YouTube channel. He said: "I’ve seen a lot of young talents disappear because it’s come too early and it’s got to their heads." He added: "My family have seen this. Luckily enough I’ve got great people around me to keep me grounded and humble and they tell me what I’m doing is not enough."
Sancho had previously left Pep Guardiola and Manchester City to move to Dortmund. During his first spell in Germany, pundit Rio Ferdinand praised the teenage winger on BT Sport after a match against Tottenham Hotspur at Wembley. Ferdinand said: "An 18-year-old scaring the life out of seasoned Premier League players. I love it. I think he’ll be the best English player in the coming years."
Concerns over Sancho's discipline emerged during his time in Germany. Dortmund dropped and fined him in October 2019 for returning late from England duty before a match against Borussia Monchengladbach. Two weeks later, Dortmund manager Lucien Favre substituted Sancho after 36 minutes against Bayern Munich, later stating that Sancho was "not good enough." Sancho and his camp felt he was hung out to dry by the decision.
Timekeeping issues and fines
Sancho had previously faced disciplinary action with England. In 2018, Sancho and Phil Foden were dropped from an England Under-19s victory over Latvia after arriving late to a training session.
Former Manchester United teammate Nemanja Matic later revealed that Sancho frequently arrived late for team sessions in England. Matic told Austrian media outlet YU Planet: "Among the players who would always be late were Paul Pogba and Jadon Sancho." Matic added that players created an internal disciplinary committee, stating: "I put a sheet of paper up on the wall where I documented the names of individuals arriving late. During one particular season we collected around £75,000 in fines."
Transfer to Manchester United
Manchester United pursued Sancho for two years before completing a £73 million transfer to sign him on a five-year contract at age 21. Upon joining, Sancho said: "I always knew that I would return to England one day. The chance to join Manchester United is a dream come true and I just cannot wait to perform in the Premier League."
His time at Old Trafford started with illness when he was hospitalized with an ear infection. Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who signed Sancho with plans to build the team around him, was sacked before Sancho scored his first goal for the club.
In December 2022, Sancho took time away from the first team after manager Erik ten Hag cited "physical and mental" factors. Ten Hag arranged for Sancho to train with Dutch amateur side OJC Rosmalen during a three-month break, providing three specialist coaches focused on mental health, technical training, and fitness. Those close to Sancho privately felt pointing to mental health was clumsy.
Rift with Erik ten Hag
A major dispute with Ten Hag began in September 2023 when the manager omitted Sancho from the squad for a 3-1 defeat at Arsenal. Ten Hag stated publicly: "On his performance in training, we didn’t select him. You have to reach the level every day at Manchester United."
Sancho responded with a social media post that was later deleted. Sancho wrote: "Please don't believe everything you read. I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue, I have conducted myself very well in training this week. I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won't go into, I've been a scapegoat for a long time which isn't fair!"
Ten Hag demanded an apology, but Sancho felt he was being singled out while other players were not punished similarly. United exiled Sancho, forcing him to train alone or with academy players, change alone, and eat black lunch-boxes outside the first-team canteen. FIFA and FIFPro have since outlawed this treatment.
When Ruben Amorim later took over as United manager, Sancho was placed in a "bomb squad" of exiled players who were only permitted to train after 5 p.m., after the first team had departed.
Loan spells at Chelsea and Aston Villa
Sancho returned to Dortmund on loan for a second spell, helping the club reach the Champions League final at Wembley. He then joined Chelsea on loan, supported by recruitment chief Joe Shields, who had previously worked with Sancho at Manchester City.
Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca structured his tactics around wingers winning one-on-one battles, though he later expressed frustration with Sancho's output in those situations. Sancho scored in Chelsea's victory over Real Betis in the Conference League final. Chelsea paid around half of Sancho's £250,000-a-week wages during the loan.
Chelsea sought a reduced salary structure for a permanent transfer. When negotiations failed, Chelsea activated a £5 million penalty clause to break their £25 million obligation to buy Sancho. Sancho then joined Aston Villa on a late loan arranged by sporting director Monchi, who later lost his job. Manager Unai Emery warmed to Sancho, but Villa passed on a permanent transfer and instead signed Alejandro Garnacho. During an October 2025 match against Manchester City, Sancho came on as a substitute but was later taken off.
Career trajectory and statistics
Sancho's statistical output dropped significantly after moving to England. Across four seasons in Germany during his first spell at Dortmund, Sancho scored 50 goals and provided 64 assists in 137 games. Since signing for United, he has not reached 10 combined goals and assists in a single league season.
Rio Ferdinand had described Sancho at age 20 as "the best young player on the planet bar none." Now 26 and having represented Manchester United, Chelsea, Aston Villa, and Borussia Dortmund, Sancho remains a free agent evaluating potential moves to the Middle East or Europe.
