Image: The FA via Getty

The effect of Jadon Sancho

By Dara O'Brien, published on 07/07/21

Manchester United’s signing of Jadon Sancho no doubt left fans excited beyond belief, but precisely what kind of effect can Jadon Sancho have on this United team? This is what I’ll be discussing in this article; how Jadon Sancho can help United reach the next level.

First of all, we need to establish what is needed to fill the right sided winger spot for this United side, which Sancho has been signed to do. Maybe above all else, United need their right winger to be creative, creating balance throughout our attack, something that has been lacking in recent years.

This obviously creates more chances for the likes of Edinson Cavani, Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford, while also taking part of the creative burden off of Bruno Fernandes, allowing for him to get into goal scoring positions more frequently. The same goes for Donny Van De Beek; having Sancho to his right will allow him to score more, something that has worked for him when playing with the likes of Paul Pogba and Juan Mata this season.

To back up the claim of Jadon Sancho being one of the most creative wingers in world football, we can simply look at his creative statistics. In the 2020-21 Bundesliga season (One that he apparently “failed to live up to expectations” in) Sancho ranks in the 99th percentile for passes completed, 98th percentile for progressive passing distance, 90th percentile for xA, 97th percentile for key passes, 99th percentile for passes into penalty area and 99th percentile for progressive passes.

However, perhaps Sancho’s best quality is his carrying of the ball. With 10.62 progressive carries and a progressive carrying distance of 196.5 per 90, Sancho is ranked in the 97th percentile for both statistics. To look even further in depth at these brilliant numbers, we can look at @maramperninety’s brilliant visualisation of Sancho’s progressive carries over his last three seasons for Dortmund.

Visualisation from @maramperninety on Twitter

The first thing that you notice when looking at the graph is the sheer volume of progressive carries Sancho performs. Considering the fact that these carries were accumulated over the last three years is astounding considering how young Sancho was and still is. The next talking point is how Sancho completes such a number of carries from both wings, proving that he can play on either wing, providing versatility; something that is crucial to a squad in such a demanding league.

The last but certainly not least important conclusion to draw from this is the overwhelmingly dominant direction of these carries. Sancho is brilliant at carrying the ball inside from the wing, stretching defences and opening up space for the likes of Luke Shaw and Aaron Wan-Bissaka to overlap, and we know what happens when Luke Shaw gets the ball on the overlap; goal. His fantastic end-product will also allow him to pick out players like Bruno Fernandes and Edinson Cavani, or even get a shot off himself.

He also supplies 0.96 goal-creating actions per90, putting him in the 97th percentile. His incredible number of goal-creating actions means that he roughly contributes to a goal every game, something that will be incredibly useful to United in terms of turning draws into wins, something we struggled with last season.

Continuing on from “turning draws into wins” leads me on nicely to my next point; Sancho will help United in breaking low-blocks down. Sancho has an innate ability to dribble past players in tight spaces, which will drag defenders out of position and open space up for players around him, not to mention the fact that it will create chances for himself. This is a quality that very few of our players have currently (Marcus Rashford perhaps being the best at this in the squad) and it will no doubt prove effective in getting results against teams that defend deep.

Another positive about Sancho’s arrival is the fact that he is already good friends with many members of the squad, specifically those currently on international duty with him. We have seen the friendship between himself and Marcus Rashford grow in the past year or so, and Sancho himself has even said that he, Luke Shaw and Harry Maguire have a good relationship off the pitch. This is something that will help Jadon in settling in and starting quickly in United career and won’t harm the work that Solskjaer has done in building squad unity.

The importance of Sancho’s versatility can’t be overstated either. He has played regularly on both wings, through the middle as a number 10 and even in a two man pairing up front with Norwegian striker Erling Haaland. This allows us to test players such as Marcus Rashford, Bruno Fernandes, Edinson Cavani and others that may need it without compromising the team too much. Sancho will also be able to rotate wings with Marcus Rashford in-game, confusing and stretching defences.

Last but not least, Sancho’s young age means that he will be at the top level for at least another decade (barring injuries). The (hopefully) extended presence of him at United allows for Greenwood to solely focus on his development as a striker, which he will no doubt be doing this season under the guidance of Edinson Cavani. This means that Sancho, Rashford and Greenwood will be able to mould together over the rest of their United careers, likely being our front three for years to come.

With all of these points put together, it leaves no doubt in my mind that Sancho will be successful at United, and under the guidance of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer there’s no level that Jadon won’t be able to reach. It feels nice to say that United could have found their front three for the next decade.

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