Manchester United 'troublemaker' Jadon Sancho can turn his career around back at Borussia Dortmund

Dortmund have confirmed that Sancho has re-joined the club on a six-month loan deal - two-and-a-half years after moving to Manchester United for £73 million ($93m). At the time, the transfer was portrayed as a major coup for the Red Devils. Former defender Rio Ferdinand had been touting Sancho as the best young player in the world - "bar none" - for a year, while ex-Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher had previously argued that the "eye-watering" fee would actually turn out to be a bargain.

Then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was certainly in no doubt that United would get their money's worth out of a "forward player in the best traditions of the club".

"He will form an integral part of my squad for years to come and we look forward to seeing him blossom," the Norwegian enthused at the time of the transfer.

Solskjaer, of course, has long since been sacked, which is not that surprising given it was always feared that there was little more to his particular brand of management than telling tales of United's glory years under Sir Alex Ferguson.

However, Sancho's demise has been truly shocking. He's gone from star signing to persona non grata at Old Trafford in a little over two years, amid constant allegations of unprofessional behaviour, which is difficult to wrap one's head around given his coaches at under-age level have repeatedly praised his maturity and commitment to his craft.

Chris McGuane, the former head of Watford's academy, once told the BBC, "Even during games, Jadon would come over and ask for feedback. He would self-correct things he felt had not gone quite right. His hunger to succeed was immense."

Meanwhile, Louis Lancaster, who worked with Sancho at Watford, touted the Londoner as a future Ballon d'Or winner because of his remarkable maturity and pure love of the game. "It doesn't matter if he's at a council pitch in London or in front of 80,000 at Wembley, he just wants to play football," he told the South China Morning Post. "He just wants to win. He just wants to be challenged and enjoy the game."

How on earth, then, did a kid that just wants to play football, that wants to be challenged, end up falling out so badly with his manager that he ended up at home playing EAFC24 while his team-mates were playing Bayern Munich in the Champions League?

Guardiola obviously raised questions over Sancho's character after his bold decision to quit City for Dortmund, publicly stating that the player "didn't want to take the challenge, the opportunity to discover if he was able to" become a first-team regular at the Etihad.

City had also been upset by Sancho's decision to turn down a £30,000-a-week contract before he had even made his professional debut - despite assurances over his importance to the club from Guardiola, sporting director Txiki Begiristain and even chairman Khaldoon al Mubarak.

Begiristain reportedly 'scolded' Sancho over the snub, while Guardiola dropped him from a pre-season tour of the United States. Sancho responded by refusing to turn up for training.

Still, despite the nature of his City exit, it would be hard to argue that it was an early indicator of a deeply flawed personality. His departure may have been poorly handled, which prompted some at City to question the advice Sancho was receiving from those close to him, but the decision to move to Dortmund was quickly vindicated. Less than a year after his arrival, he was playing Champions League football and lining out for England.

Sancho felt indebted to Dortmund for his meteoric rise "because it’s unheard of for a team that gets 80,000 at every home game to put so much faith in youngsters." Indeed, for their Champions League last-16 first leg against Sevilla on February 17, 2021, BVB fielded Sancho, Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham in the same starting line-up. All three were considered destined for greatness, but while Haaland and Bellingham are now bona fide superstars, Sancho is regarded as one of the biggest flops in Manchester United history - which is no mean feat, given the club's recent record of signing duds.

There have, of course, been flashes of his undeniable talent on the field at Old Trafford, but of greater significance has been what's unfolded off it. Former United midfielder Nemanja Matic recently revealed that Sancho was "always" late for training. He wasn't the only one, of course. United have long had a problem with player discipline. But it's worth pointing out that there were concerns over Sancho's conduct during his time at Dortmund.

Although initially considered a humble character with a low-key lifestyle because of his desire to avoid all possible "distractions", Sancho's tardiness became a major cause of consternation. He repeatedly failed to turn up on time for team meetings, and what really bothered those behind the scenes, was that warnings and fines did absolutely nothing to change his behaviour.

Sancho's propensity for staying up late playing video games was also an issue, while social media posts showcasing his extravagant lifestyle did not go over well at all with Dortmund, who consider themselves a working-class club and, thus, expect their players to shun the undignified displays of decadence associated with the modern footballer.

Mario Basler, a former FC Hollywood star, even claimed that Bayern Munich would never have considered signing Sancho because "he's not what they look for in a person. His attitude is a problem and he has to change it. Sancho was already a troublemaker at Dortmund."

In that sense, Sancho is perhaps just another example of United's infamous lack of due diligence. Solskjaer's scouts told him that Sancho was perfect for his preferred style of play, but maybe he wasn't the kind of character to be relied upon. Sancho certainly did nothing to help keep him in a job, failing to score or assist a single goal for United before Solskjaer was sacked in November 2021.

It's also worth pointing out that Ralf Rangnick claimed in one of his brutally honest appraisals of United's problems that Sancho's struggles were related to "a lot of the things in his head" long before Erik ten Hag publicly stated (reportedly without the player's consent) that the 23-year-old's issues were not just physical "but also mental".

The hope was that some much-needed time away from the game before, during and after the 2022 World Cup, would allow Sancho to decompress and start afresh. Two goals in his first three games after his return hinted at a return to form and there was genuine optimism surrounding Sancho going into the current campaign. But then came his exclusion from the squad to face Arsenal on September 3 and the subsequent spat that effectively spelt the end of his United career.

Everyone has their opinion on who is to blame, including a whole host of former United players. Louis Saha initially suggested Ten Hag was at fault before later slating Sancho for allegedly refusing to play; Dimitar Berbatov argued that Sancho had "overestimated his value" to the club; Dwight Yorke rather amusingly accused Sancho of "strolling through life"; while Roy Keane, of all people, suggested that a simple apology was all that was required to resolve this particular player-manager spat.

However, neither man was willing to back down. Both felt disrespected, making a parting of the ways both inevitable and sensible. Consequently, it now longer matters where the fault lies. All that matters is what happens next, with United and Sancho now on the same page, in the sense that they both need him to make a success of his return to Dortmund.

United desperately need to recoup some of the money they wasted on Sancho, while the man himself simply has to take this opportunity to turn his career around. He may be only 23, but he wouldn't be the first footballer to fall from grace as rapidly as he rose to prominence.

It's certainly hard to see another top club taking a chance on Sancho if he fails to make the most of his second chance at Signal Iduna Park. He used to love playing in front of the 'Yellow Wall'. "It's a crazy feeling," he once said. "Every time I step out on this pitch, I get a nice buzz. I'm just delighted that I'm here and getting an opportunity to play."

He'll be just as delighted to be back. The fans are eagerly awaiting his return, too, while Edin Terzic's team could do with a lift right now. But, as ever, everything depends on Sancho's frame of mind. This feels like the right move at the right time. It's just that now more than ever before there is a serious question mark over whether he'll actually turn up.