Jadon Sancho could join Kylian Mbappe as the best young player available on the summer transfer market in 2020, and Real Madrid and Barcelona could be competing head to head for the Borussia Dortmund superstar.
Although Jadon Sancho didn’t start against Freiburg last weekend due to cumulative fatigue, the England international still managed to get an assist off the bench in a 2-2 tie for Borussia Dortmund. Sancho has been a standout for Dortmund since the start of last season, as he was arguably the best player in the entire Bundesliga in 2018-2019.
Every big club will have at least cursory interest in Sancho, and Don Balon’s Paula Serrano reports that Real Madrid and Barcelona are indeed among the clubs gunning for the Dortmund winger’s services going into the summer.
Per Serrano, Barcelona are actually the favorites to land Sancho between the two La Liga powerhouses, because it seems like Sancho would prefer a move to Camp Nou. Given that Barca recently purchased Antoine Griezmann and should value another former Dortmund star in Ousmane Dembele highly, that may not be a guarantee. But Griezmann could easily move to sriker, and Sancho, per the report, could be seen as the type of chance creator capable of somewhat replacing Lionel Messi on the right side of the formation.
Meanwhile, Real could sell Gareth Bale, now that he’s recouped his value with a strong start to the season, in the summer. They already have Eden Hazard as a chance-creating winger with dribbling skills and quickness, so Sancho may be redundant. Mbappe, with his strength and lethal finishing, would be a more ideal replacement for Bale and young partner for Hazard on the other flank.
Sancho would be a massive signing for any team, and Dortmund’s asking price should honestly be more than the suggested 120 million euros. Since he’s just 20 and already one of the world’s best at generating assists, a price tag of 150 million euros could be in the cards.
Real will monitor Sancho and other talented attackers, though Mbappe will clearly be at the top of their list. So if Barcelona want Sancho more and the player is uninterested in attempting to be Manchester United’s savior, then it looks like Camp Nou would be the most likely landing spot. Either way, it doesn’t look like Sancho is staying in Dortmund, which is bittersweet.