Borussia Dortmund plot third Jadon Sancho signing after troubled Manchester United spell

Borussia Dortmund are interested in signing Jadon Sancho for a third time when his troubled spell at Manchester United officially ends.

The winger is on loan at Aston Villa this season but is available on a free transfer in the summer and Dortmund have confirmed they hope to bring him back to the Signal Iduna Park.

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Sancho is in the final months of a six-year contract at Old Trafford – though he has not played for United since the 2024 Community Shield and has not appeared for them in the Premier League since 2023 – and while they have an option to extend his deal for a year, they are unlikely to do so.

Dortmund, who made £73m when selling Sancho to United in 2021, also re-signed him on loan for the second half of the 2023-24 season.

Now, with the chance to sign the 26-year-old without paying a fee, Dortmund are looking at Sancho as a potential replacement for his former teammate Julian Brandt, who will leave in the summer.

Managing director Lars Ricken told Sport Bild: “We’re currently looking at a lot of players and analysing them closely. We check whether they can make us better. We’re doing that with Jadon as well.

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“Of course, we are looking for an offensive player who brings quality, can help us immediately, and doesn’t require an unrealistic transfer fee.”

Sancho has only made 83 appearances for United, scoring 12 goals and getting a mere six assists, and was not allowed to train with the first team by former manager Erik ten Hag after relations between them broke down.

While United have tried to sell him since then, he has instead had three loan spells, beginning with a return to Dortmund, who he helped reach the 2024 Champions League final.

He spent 2024-25 on loan at Chelsea, scoring in their Conference League final win over Real Betis, though the London club paid a £5m penalty clause to United when opting not to buy him.

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He joined Villa on deadline day in September and has since made 31 appearances, scoring one goal, and could reach a European final for a third successive season.

In his first spell at Dortmund, Sancho scored 50 goals and got 57 assists in just 137 games.

He became their third biggest sale ever after Ousmane Dembele’s move to Barcelona and Jude Bellingham’s transfer to Real Madrid.