Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc has confirmed that Jadon Sancho will not move to Manchester United this summer.

The Englishman has been Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s prime target as the Norwegian manager considers the winger as the perfect addition to his already lethal attack.

Manchester United were hoping to unleash a frontline of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Jadon Sancho this season, with Mason Greenwood adding further firepower from the bench but that ship seems to have sailed.

Borussia Dortmund had set an August 10 deadline for any deal to be completed but Manchester United showed no urgency to follow that timeline. Since then, the Bundesliga giants have stated that Jadon Sancho would not be sold but that has not stopped the rumour mill from churning stories.

Manchester United only submitted their first official bid for the player last week but their €100m offer was rejected by Dortmund because it was below their €120m valuation of the player. The Red Devils are expected to return with an improved bid before the end of this window but the latest comments from Zorc will have United fans scratching their heads.

Manchester United unlikely to complete Jadon Sancho transfer this summer

Speaking to reporters on Saturday, Zorc confirmed that the door was closed on Sancho’s move to Old Trafford this summer.

“The door is closed, I have said this 27 times!”

Incidentally, the club hierarchy are of the same opinion, and it is a feeling also shared by head coach Lucien Favre, the players as well as the fans. Marco Reus had recently stated that he was excited that Sancho was staying at the club.

The rest of the Dortmund team have been restricted from speaking to the media about Sancho in a bid to lessen speculations. However, Thomas Meunier, while walking into Dortmund’s Brackel training centre, revealed to Sky Sports News that the Englishman was going to stay at the Bundesliga side.

Dortmund fans also believe that their star player would stay at the club for the remainder of the season. However, they accept that Sancho could leave Dortmund next summer.

Incidentally, Sancho has not trained since Manchester United placed their offer but that is reportedly because he is suffering from a respiratory infection.

With the Red Devils now all but resigned to carry on without Sancho for at least one more season, it remains to be seen if the club could sign a replacement before the window ends on Monday night.

Solskjaer is reportedly close to adding Edinson Cavani to his squad but would the Uruguayan’s arrival help Manchester United fans forget the agony of missing out on Sancho? Only time will tell.

Published 04 Oct 2020, 17:02 IST