Manchester United attacker Jadon Sancho has claimed that he has been made a "scapegoat" at the club and has publicly disagreed with Erik ten Hag's claims as to why he was dropped from the squad.
The former Borussia Dortmund man has failed to live up to his £72.7m price tag since joining the Red Devils in 2021, and he has not started a Premier League game so far in the 2023-24 season.
Following three ineffective substitute cameos, Sancho was left out of the squad entirely for Sunday's trip to Arsenal, where Antony, Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho and Facundo Pellistri made up Ten Hag's wide options.
Rashford did find the back of the net at the Emirates, while Garnacho had a late goal disallowed, but the Red Devils suffered their second away loss of the season as they went down 3-1 to Mikel Arteta's team.
Sancho was not reported to be carrying any injury before the game, and Ten Hag was unsurprisingly quizzed on his absence in his post-match press conference, claiming that the 23-year-old's performances in training did not warrant a place in the squad.
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"Jadon, on his performances in training we did not select him," Ten Hag said. "You have to reach a level every day at Manchester United and we can make choices in the front line. So for this game he was not selected."
Following his manager's revelations, Sancho took to social media to hit out at his treatment, stating that he had conducted himself "very well" in training and admitting that he has felt like a "scapegoat" for a long time.
"Please don't believe everything you read. I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue, I have conducted myself very well in training this week," the winger wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
"I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won't go into, I've been a scapegoat for a long time which isn't fair! All I want to do is play football with a smile on my face and contribute to my team.
"I respect all decisions that are made by the coaching staff, I play with fantastic players and grateful to do so, which I know every week is a challenge. I will continue to fight for this badge no matter what."
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Sancho memorably missed four months of the 2022-23 campaign during the winter period as he struggled with a psychological problem, and he was restricted to 21 Premier League starts last term.
The ex-Manchester City youngster managed seven goals and three assists from 41 games in a Red Devils jersey last year, taking his total for the club to 12 goals and six assists in 82 contests.
Owing to his struggles in a Man United shirt, Sancho has now failed to make an England squad for nearly two years, with his most recent Three Lions appearance coming in October 2021.
The 23-year-old is still contracted to the Red Devils until the end of the 2025-26 season, and his terms include the option to extend for an additional 12 months.
Man United's first game back after the international break sees the Red Devils face Brighton & Hove Albion on September 16, four days before they tackle Bayern Munich in their Champions League opener.
Ben Knapton
