Jadon Sancho is attracting interest from Saudi Arabia after Chelsea decided against signing the Manchester United winger as his loan deal at Stamford Bridge draws to a close, according to Ben Jacobs.
Sancho, 25, swapped Manchester for London at the end of the summer window to join Chelsea on a season-long loan.
An obligation clause worth between £20-25 million, depending on Chelsea’s final league position, was included in the deal. If the Blues finished at least 15th in the table the loan move would become a permanent one, and the price would rise the higher they placed.
In April, after Chelsea’s 2-1 win over Fulham, Enzo Maresca’s side were mathematically guaranteed to finish no lower than 14th and the obligation clause was triggered. They ended the season in fourth, securing a return to the Champions League, and the price was then fixed at £25 million.
However, Chelsea negotiated a penalty fee they could pay – worth £5 million – to cancel the obligation and effectively convert Sancho’s move into a straightforward loan deal.
The West London club have been locked in negotiations with the 25-year-old’s representatives this week as they were open to signing him permanently. But his wage packet at Old Trafford, believed to be in excess of £250,000 a week, was considered unfeasible and Chelsea officials were pushing for a compromise to sanction the deal.
This could not be reached, however, with Sancho unwilling to match the incentive-heavy payment structure Chelsea have implemented at Stamford Bridge in recent years in favour of his current salary.
They opted to instead pay the £5 million penalty fee to return Sancho to Old Trafford at the end of this month – a move neither the player nor the Mancunian club wanted.
United were desperate to sell the winger this summer, finally shifting him from their wage bill and bringing an end to one of the poorer pieces of business the Red Devils have completed in recent years, which is saying something. INEOS will likely have been seething at the news today that Chelsea had chosen to back out of the arrangement agreed in the dying hours of last summer’s window.
But Jacobs, a reporter with excellent connections in the Middle East, contends the Saudi Pro League retains interest in Sancho and could look to make a move this summer, offering United a glimmer of hope on an otherwise dark day in Manchester.
Speaking to United View TV, Jacobs reveals there is “interest” amongst Saudi clubs in signing Sancho with the Middle East presenting one of the only options where the 25-year-old would not have to compromise on wages.
“The challenge is the exact same on that Chelsea have just faced. If Sancho doesn’t drop his wage, it’s going to be quite difficult to find a solution for him unless, for example, he fancies a move to Saudi Arabia where there is interest.”
Given Sancho was content to return to a club he has actively declared his desire to leave to avoid giving up his salary, it feels a reasonable prediction the winger would be willing to entertain a move to the Middle East which could see him exponentially increase his earnings.
Featured image Julian Finney via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox
Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
