Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth has revealed the club allowed Jadon Sancho to join Chelsea as they had sufficient depth in his position.
Sancho signed for the Blues on loan with an obligation to buy at the very end of transfer deadline day, essentially bringing the curtain down on an unsuccessful three-year spell at Old Trafford.
The winger was welcomed back into the first-team fold at United during pre-season after making up with manager Erik ten Hag, only to be left out of the matchday squad for their first two games of the new Premier League campaign.
During a wide-ranging interview with the English press alongside CEO Omar Berrada, Ashworth explained why United let Sancho go.
“I think with any player, whether it’s Jadon, whether it’s Scott [McTominay] or whether it’s Aaron [Wan-Bissaka], if there’s a preference that they would like to move and go to a new club and it’s right for them and it’s right for us, then you have to explore it. We felt we had enough depth in that particular position to be able to cover it.
“We’ve got four really good wide players, Jadon was a fifth, and it just enabled us to make that decision that, if it was good for him and good for us, it was something we were willing to consider.”
When asked if Sancho simply had no future at United, Ashworth replied: “Nothing to do with that. It was a decision that we made – if it’s right for Jadon and it’s right for us to move on. He wanted to explore the opportunity at Chelsea, like Scott wanted to explore the opportunity at Napoli, like Aaron wanted to explore the opportunity at West Ham. We’re not in a position where we’re kicking players out of the club.”
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