Former Manchester United coach Benni McCarthy says Jadon Sancho lacked the proper consistency to earn a place in Erik ten Hag's starting XI.
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Sancho loaned to Chelsea last summerFell out with ten Hag McCarthy lifts lid on training habits Follow GOAL on WhatsApp! 🟢📱WHAT HAPPENED?
McCarthy worked on ten Hag's coaching staff during his time at the club, and he has explained that while Sancho possesses immense talent, he struggled to consistently perform in training. As a result, the South Africa legend insists that ten Hag simply couldn't pick him.
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Ten Hag and Sancho were involved in a highly-publicised spat before the winger left the club, with the Dutchman criticising his training efforts. Now, McCarthy has claimed that the former Borussia Dortmund winger is a very private person, and struggled somewhat to fit in, but insists he cannot hold that character trait against him.
WHAT MCCARTHY SAID
McCarthy told betonlinepromocodes.com: "I couldn’t fault Jadon in training. He brings unbelievable quality, ability and skills. He can make you stop in awe and ask yourself just how he can do things. He brought unmatched quality.
"I think what didn’t help Jadon was that he’s a very closed-off person. He keeps to himself, and from the outside it looked like he wasn’t trying to make friends with his team-mates. He might not have joked around but really he was just quiet, and I don’t think you should judge players on who he gets on with or not.
"Based on his ability and craft, I never saw any problems in his relationships. He was quiet natured, and so when training is done, he doesn’t stay to talk, he heads home. He’s very private. I think a bit of an introvert, which isn’t the opinion he gets branded with in the press.
"I think that when it came to Erik, he wanted to see Jadon at his best everyday. Monday to Friday, no days off. I think that’s what the manager would expect from his players, and so it’s up to the players to give it to him. If you can’t do that, you’re going to have problems, and I think the differences and problems then surfaced.
"For me, I don’t have a bad thing to say about Jadon. I loved him, he was unbelievable, sometimes he was unplayable. I don’t want to rush to judgement on players if they’re reserved."
GettyWHAT NEXT?
Sancho is likely to leave United this summer and has been linked with a potential move to Juventus in Serie A after Chelsea rejected the chance to sign him permanently. He has made a total of 83 appearances for the club, scoring 12 goals and laying on six assists.