United star would “love” to join a major PL rival this summer as INEOS prepare to cut losses – report

Brentford have held talks to sign Jadon Sancho on a free transfer this summer, but the 26-year-old winger only has eyes for a different Premier League club, according to a new report. An Expensive Mistake In a long line of terrible signings at Old Trafford in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era, the £73 million deal agreed with Borussia Dortmund for Sancho is arguably the worst. The South London native never adapted to life in Manchester, despite having come through the academy in the blue half of the city before leaving for Germany as a 17-year-old. At the Signal Iduna Park, he emerged as one of the most exciting wingers in Europe, offering dizzying dribbling and cutting-edge creativity on par with the continent’s best attackers. At the time, United looked to have landed the ideal complement to complete their young attacking trident with Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood; the fact that all three, for very different reasons, no longer reside in M16 tells its own story of how this plan played out. Across 83 appearances in a red shirt, Sancho returned a paltry 12 goals and six assists. This lack of production on the pitch was exacerbated by numerous issues off it, leading Manchester United to sanction multiple loans as no club was willing to sign him permanently. Sancho has spent this season on a year-long loan with rivals Aston Villa after failing to agree terms with Chelsea last summer following a similar arrangement in the 2024/25 campaign. He previously returned to Borussia Dortmund on a six-month loan in January 2024. Testing the Free Agency Market Manchester United retain the option to extend Sancho’s exorbitant contract by twelve months. But there is zero interest in doing this as INEOS prepare to finally rid themselves of an expensive mistake ahead of a return to the Champions League next year. This means Sancho will become a free agent next month, with potential suitors — such as Brentford — having been able to hold talks over a deal. Bournemouth and Crystal Palace are also keeping tabs on the situation, according to Sports Boom. But the player is understood to be actively pushing to remain in Birmingham as he would “love to stay at Aston Villa” next season, having become the second Manchester United misfit to get a new lease of life under Unai Emery. EXCL: Jadon Sancho would love to stay at Aston Villa next season, with Villa exploring a cut-price permanent deal.✂️ Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Brentford are all monitoring after Man Utd decided against offering him a new contract.✍️❌#AVFC #MUFChttps://t.co/upnhlKLRgl — Sportsboom (@Sportsboomcom) May 26, 2026 Tweet: “EXCL: Jadon Sancho would love to stay at Aston Villa next season, with Villa exploring a cut-price permanent deal. Crystal Palace, Bournemouth and Brentford are all monitoring after Man Utd decided against offering him a new contract.” Aston Villa have enjoyed a superb campaign under the Spaniard, finishing fourth in the Premier League and winning the Europa League with an emphatic 3-0 trouncing of Freiburg in Istanbul. Sancho has featured often in the second half of the season, having endured a slow start to life at Villa Park. Emery has made reference in press-conferences to keeping the Manchester United loanee, though he would undoubtedly have to make a considerable sacrifice on his salary to facilitate a permanent move — a choice Sancho has consistently rejected in the past. Final Thoughts Manchester United will have little care where Sancho ends up plying his trade next season; just that it will not be at the Theatre of Dreams. While interest from teams like Brentford, Bournemouth and Palace makes sense if they feel they can unlock his talent on a free, their wage packets will not interest the player. If Aston Villa are prepared to use the cash they save with no transfer fee to line Sancho’s pockets, he may remain where he is. But if they are not, interest from Türkiye and Saudi Arabia could offer him an escape from English football, given his reputation on home soil is at its nadir. Featured image Eddie Keogh via Getty Images The Peoples Person has been one of the world’s leading Man United news sites for over a decade. Follow us on Bluesky: @peoplesperson.bsky.social Darragh Fox Darragh is an editor for The Peoples Person who spent three years learning about the Cold War at the University of Sheffield slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about. Amad’s first touch should be officially recognised as the eighth wonder of the world.