Chelsea ready to give Jadon Sancho what Man Utd didn’t as Blues boss Enzo Maresca explains how his management of England winger will differ to Erik ten Hag

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca showered Jadon Sancho with plaudits following his match-winning debut against Bournemouth. The England winger has joined Chelsea on loan from Manchester United, where he had fallen out of favour with boss Erik ten Hag. The Italian has now disclosed his strategy for getting Sancho to perform at his peak, something the Dutch manager failed to do.

Speaking about Sancho’s performance, the Chelsea boss said: "Very happy, very happy for him. He was very good, I think Joao [Felix] was very good and Christopher [Nkunku] scored but was also very good.

“I said already when we brought in Jadon that the reason why is because we were looking for another winger like Noni [Madueke]. Noni is doing that on the right side, winning one-on-one, creating chances, scoring goals and we were looking for the same on our left side with Jadon."

When asked how important it could be for Sancho to have a good rapport with the staff and fans, Maresca replied: “It's very important. I have a feeling that Jadon is a guy that needs love.

“This is what I think when I spoke with him before he joined us. Also, I know he has the desire to show the player he is, but for me, it is just to enjoy football. This is the reason why they play. They are happy and want to play football, they want to enjoy football and then because they are good, they are going to do good things.”

Sancho moved to Manchester United in the summer of 2021 from Borussia Dortmund for a reported fee of €85m (£71.7m/$94.2m). However, it never seemed to work out for the winger, who left on loan to Borussia Dortmund last season. He has now joined Chelsea, with the Blues holding an obligation to buy next summer.

The 24-year-old will now be in line to get his first start for Chelsea next weekend when they take on West Ham on Saturday, September 21.