England winger Jadon Sancho says joining Manchester United is “a dream come true” after he completed his £73m move from Borussia Dortmund.
Sancho is the second most expensive English player of all time behind his new United team-mate Harry Maguire.
He joins United on a five-year deal.
“I’ll always be grateful to Dortmund for giving me the opportunity to play first-team football, although I always knew that I would return to England,” 21-year-old Sancho said.
“The chance to join Manchester United is a dream come true and I just cannot wait to perform in the Premier League.
“This is a young and exciting squad and I know, together, we can develop into something special to bring the success that the fans deserve.”
United agreed the fee for Sancho on 1 July and his five-year contract with the club has a further 12 month option.
The completion of the deal brings to an end United’s protracted pursuit of former Manchester City player Sancho. They had expected to sign him last summer but could not agree a fee.
Sancho scored 50 goals and registered 57 assists in 137 appearances for Dortmund.
United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says Old Trafford will give Sancho “the platform he needs to release his untapped talent”.
“Jadon epitomises the type of player I want to bring to the club – he is a forward player in the best traditions of Manchester United,” Solskjaer told the club website.
“He will form an integral part of my squad for years to come and we look forward to seeing him blossom. His goals and assists records speak for themselves and he will also bring tremendous pace, flair and creativity to the team.”
Sancho’s return to the English game comes after he helped the national team reach the final of the European Championship, where they were beaten on penalties by Italy.
The former City youth player, along with Bukayo Saka and now United team-mate Marcus Rashford, were subjected to racial abuse on social media after they failed to score in the decisive shootout.
How Sancho compares to Man Utd attackers
Sancho’s move to Old Trafford will see him not only link up with England team-mate Rashford, but also Edinson Cavani, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood in what could prove a formidable attack for Solskjaer’s side.
Sancho scored 16 goals in all competitions during the 2020-21 season, five fewer than Rashford, but four more than Greenwood, and nine more than Martial. Cavani, who joined United on a free transfer last year after leaving Paris St-Germain, netted 17.
In four seasons at Dortmund, Sancho notched 57 assists and created 65 big chances, more than Rashford, Martial, Greenwood and Cavani during the same period.
| Sancho v Manchester United forwards – since start of 2017-18 season (all competitions) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Appearances | Goals | Assists | Shots on target | Big chances created | Mins per goal involvement |
| Jadon Sancho | 137 | 50 | 57 | 100 | 65 | 198 |
| Marcus Rashford | 200 | 69 | 35 | 214 | 38 | 197 |
| Anthony Martial | 167 | 53 | 25 | 138 | 38 | 201 |
| Mason Greenwood | 105 | 29 | 8 | 82 | 16 | 202 |
| Edinson Cavani | 141 | 87 | 23 | 173 | 34 | 121 |
Sancho also stacks up well when compared to some of the biggest names in Europe.
Since the start of the 2018-19 season, only seven players have more combined goals and assists than the England international. Of those players, only Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (43) has created more goals than Sancho (41) in that time.
| Goals and assists – Europe’s top five leagues since 2018-19 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Goals | Assists | Total |
| Lionel Messi | 91 | 43 | 134 |
| Robert Lewandowski | 97 | 18 | 115 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | 81 | 16 | 97 |
| Kylian Mbappe | 78 | 19 | 97 |
| Ciro Immobile | 71 | 21 | 92 |
| Karim Benzema | 65 | 23 | 88 |
| Mohamed Salah | 63 | 23 | 86 |
| Harry Kane | 58 | 20 | 78 |
| Duvan Zapata | 56 | 22 | 78 |
| Jadon Sancho | 37 | 41 | 78 |
City to United via Dortmund – Sancho timeline
March 2000: Born in Camberwell, south London, growing up in nearby Kennington.
2007: Spotted by Watford at the age of seven, registering as a player two years later.
March 2015: Joins Manchester City shortly before his 15th birthday for a fee rising up to £500,000.
August 2017: Leaves City aged 17 without making a senior appearance, joining Borussia Dortmund for about £10m.
October 2017: Part of England squad that wins the U17 World Cup, though he only takes part in the group stage before being recalled by Dortmund. Makes his Dortmund debut as a late substitute in a 2-2 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt.
April 2018: Scores his first Dortmund goal in a 4-0 win against Bayer Leverkusen a month after his 18th birthday.
October 2018: Makes his England debut aged 18 in their Nations League draw with Croatia, the first player born in the 2000s to play for the Three Lions.
September 2019: Scores his first England goals at the age of 19 in a 5-3 win against Kosovo.
February 2020: Becomes the only teenager to score 25 Bundesliga goals after hitting the opener in a 5-0 win over Union Berlin a month before his 20th birthday.
June 2020: Ends the 2019-20 season with 20 goals and 18 assists in 44 appearances for Dortmund in all competitions.
May 2021: After his proposed move to Old Trafford fell through in 2020, Sancho notches 16 goals and 20 assists across all competitions in 2020-21 for Dortmund, earning him a spot in Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2020 squad.
June 2021: United agree £73m deal with Dortmund.
July 2021: Completes his move to Old Trafford.