Man United defender reveals how squad reacted to Jadon Sancho’s response to Erik ten Hag

Jadon Sancho released a statement following Manchester United’s loss against Arsenal after Erik ten Hag stated that he was left out of the squad because of his training performances.

The 23-year-old winger, who has not started for United so far this season, posted the message on social media platform X after his manager commented on his absence in the post-match press conference.

“Please don’t believe everything you read,” wrote Sancho. “I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue, I have conducted myself in training very well this week. 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!”

The comments, which seem to be referencing his manager but also potentially the journalists who write stories on United, have sparked major attention and even ignited rumours about Saudi Arabia clubs being interested in the £73 million winger.

However, within the dressing room, defender Victor Lindelof has stressed that there remains a togetherness and that the squad are ‘calm’ despite the noise surrounding Sancho’s statement.

“I think… In a club like United there is always very, very much written about and always will be. Regardless of what happens, they try to make it as big as possible and it makes headlines,” he told Swedish journalists, as quoted by Sport Bladet. “But for us players, it’s calm.

“Of course, we’ve gone out and played four games and got two slightly worse results, but otherwise we don’t think too much about it. We are a tight group with a good feeling. That’s how it is when you play at the highest level. There will always be people who want to like and write and things like that. But for my own part, it has been calm.”

Several reports, however, have suggested that there is now tension between the player and Ten Hag that could possibly cause issues.

The extent of the issue will likely be clarified when the United boss faces the media on Friday and then what his team selection is on the following day against Brighton.