Manchester United could strike an agreement for the Jadon Sancho transfer this January ahead of the move going through in the summer, says German football expert Raphael Honigstein.
The journalist spoke to the Transfer Talk podcast on Sky Sports, who note that Man Utd were in for Sancho last summer, and it seems Honigstein isn’t ruling out the possibility of a deal for next season being agreed before then.
Honigstein insists he doesn’t currently see this being on the horizon, but suggests it could be that United will try to do something similar to what Chelsea did with Christian Pulisic, perhaps in the spring when they have a better idea of their financial situation.
MORE: Liverpool vs Man United breaks Sky viewing record
“Everybody in Dortmund knows nothing will happen in January,” Honigstein said. “The player is not agitating for a move, there’s a very clear agreement that transfers of that magnitude at Dortmund will only happen in the summer.
“There was a big transfer announced in January a couple of years ago. That was Christian Pulisic [to Chelsea]. But remember, even his deal was the deal for the summer.
“So no one’s stopping United, if they went out, and felt really confident, to say, ‘let’s do this deal now, let’s make sure we get in now’. And maybe then announce it at the end of January. That’s inherently possible.
“We just haven’t seen or heard anything to suggest that they are indeed ready and willing to come back to that negotiation at the moment. I think everyone at Dortmund is under no illusions that the player wants to leave.
“But they think that the offers and the real negotiations will start closer to towards spring when clubs are perhaps in a better position to understand how much money they’ll have available for their transfer window in the summer.”
Red Devils fans will surely hope the Sancho signing can still be on the cards, with the England international looking one of the most exciting young players in the world during his time with Borussia Dortmund.
United need a bit more flair and spark in the wide-forward areas, and Sancho looks ideal for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s direct and attack-minded style of play.