Manchester United set to sign Sancho: Decoding his crunch stats

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Rajdeep Saha

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Last updated on Jul 01, 2021, 03:32 pm

Manchester United are set to spend a whopping £73m deal to sign Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund. The 21-year-old England international, who is currently on duty at the European Championships, will complete the formalities this month. Sancho enjoyed his time at Dortmund and dominated the numbers. The winger brings immense quality and will bolster United's attacking exploits. We decode the crunch numbers.

Sancho scored 50 goals for Dortmund in 137 appearances

Sancho made his debut for Dortmund in the 2017-18 season and became a force from 2018-19 onwards. The last three seasons were pivotal for the youngster as he got plenty of goals and assists. Sancho featured in 137 matches for Dortmund, netting 50 goals in total. During his time there, he won the DFL Supercup in 2019 and the DFB-Pokal in 2021.

Breaking down Sancho's exploits at Dortmund in the Bundesliga

Since the start of 2018-19, Sancho has been highly consistent. He clocked 37 goals in the Bundesliga and made 41 assists across three seasons. He ranks 10th in the list for most goals and assists combined among Europe's top players plying their trade in major leagues. He ranks third in terms of assists alone.

60 assists and 49 goals across the last three seasons

In the 2020-21 season, Sancho netted 16 goals in all competitions and contributed with 20 assists. In the Bundesliga, he had eight goals and 12 assists. In the 2019-20 season, the creative forward scored 20 and assisted 20 across competitions, including 17 each in the Bundesliga. In the 2018-19 season, he netted 13 goals and made 20 assists, including 12 and 18 in Bundesliga.

Comparing Sancho's numbers against Rashford and Greenwood

When we compare Sancho to United's prolific forward Marcus Rashford across the last three seasons, the numbers are engrossing. Rashford, who generally plays as a left-winger and sometimes as a striker, has contributed with 46 goals and 37 assists since 2018-19. Meanwhile, Mason Greenwood, who has been utilized mainly on the right, has 29 goals and 10 assists across the last two seasons.

United now have dimension in the right side of attack

Sancho will be preferred on the right where he is set to face competition from the likes of Greenwood and Daniel James. To have both Sancho and Greenwood in the line-up, the latter could be drafted in as the central striker. However, Greenwood has enjoyed more success as the right-winger. What United get here is two young guns with promising attributes.

Analysis: Why Sancho could be the real deal?

Sancho has the qualities of an able creator, besides being a goal-scorer. With Bruno Fernandes being the main creator, United get another player in the mix to attract more goals. Sancho's outstanding dribbling abilities and sheer pace make him stand out. He can also make the right decisions in the final third. With the ability to create dangerous situations, Sancho could be a force.