Sancho, previously renowned as one of Europe’s top wingers during his initial tenure at Dortmund from 2017 to 2021, returned to Germany from Manchester United on a temporary basis last month following a disagreement with Erik ten Hag, rendering him ineligible to play for Manchester United.
Sancho has likened his return to Dortmund to being back “home” and has expressed that this sentiment frequently crossed his mind during his time at United. However, his stay may not be permanent, as Kehl acknowledged that Dortmund may not have the financial means to purchase him permanently come summer.
Dortmund faces a similar situation with Chelsea left-back Ian Maatsen, currently on loan from Tottenham. Kehl stated in an interview with Sky Sport Germany, “Unfortunately for both players, neither option was realistic…If you know what we got for Jadon Sancho two and a half years ago, then you also know that it might not be very, very difficult,” referring to Sancho’s £73 million move to England.
“We naturally advocated for a [permanent] option on him – and also with Ian – but the negotiating position was not such that we could implement it and so we will accept it for now.”
United did not include an option to buy in the final transaction, despite the potential for Sancho’s value to increase if he were to return to his previous form at Dortmund.
A similar strategy has been employed by the club in the past regarding loan agreements, notably with Alexis Sanchez joining Inter in 2019.
Sancho has already amassed more minutes in the Bundesliga this season in three weeks than he did in the Premier League over five months, despite not featuring for United since August.
Although he was sidelined with an injury for Dortmund’s match against Heidenheim on Friday, the 23-year-old provided assists in his first two games, resulting in victories against Darmstadt and Koln.
