Erik ten Hag has revealed a key reason behind Jadon Sancho's two separate departures from Manchester United while the Dutchman was in charge at Old Trafford.

Sancho was exiled from the United first team after a public row over his training performances, with the winger refusing to apologise to Ten Hag over a perceived lack of effort.

He spent the second half of the 2023/24 season on loan at Borussia Dortmund before returning to United, at which point Ten Hag said the pair had 'drawn the line' under their feud after a clear-the-air meeting. But Sancho was subsequently sent out on loan to Chelsea on the following transfer deadline day, and Ten Hag was then sacked in October 2024. Now, Ten Hag has opened up on a secondary reason that caused Sancho's initial departure from the club - and it wasn't just what happened on the training pitch.

Erik ten Hag reveals surprise Jadon Sancho request

In a new interview with The Athletic, Ten Hag discussed his early months in charge of the club and, in particular, the big-money arrival of Antony from Ajax in the summer of 2022.

United splashed out a fee of £81.3 million to sign the Brazilian winger but, after a couple of encouraging performances at the start of his Old Trafford career, he failed to produce the consistency fans would have expected from a player signed for such a significant amount of money.

The perceived over-spending on Antony - and the fact he was one of several players signed from Ten Hag's former club, Ajax - would be a key criticism levelled at Ten Hag throughout his time in charge, and even in the years since his sacking.

But the Dutchman has revealed that Antony's arrival was actually prompted by a request from Sancho that particularly surprised him.

He explained that Sancho, who often played on the right side of attack for his previous club Borussia Dortmund, had told Ten Hag that he would instead be more comfortable playing on the left flank under his management - which prompted a re-think.

"There came up a problem because Sancho didn't want to play on the right side; he said that," Ten Hag revealed. "Which was very weird; he played often on the right. He said he felt more comfortable on the left. So we had an issue, and we were late.

"I see on performances and profiles what is needed for the game [when signing players]. Not on emotion, if I like a player or dislike a player, or if I trained him before, or if I bought him or the club bought him, no. I can be acting very professional, I would say."

Sancho did make 21 Premier League starts in Ten Hag's first season, but was restricted to three substitute appearances in 2023/24 before he was exiled from the squad by his manager. In those three matches, Antony had been preferred on the right flank while Marcus Rashford operated on the left.

Rashford went on to make 35 starts in all competitions in 2023/24, while Alejandro Garnacho also broke through into the first team - meaning Sancho's minutes in his preferred position would have been limited in any case he had stayed.

Sancho went on to join Chelsea on a season-long loan and made 41 appearances in all competitions, starting on 26 occasions.

Jadon Sancho's next club update

Sancho has been a free agent since he was released at the end of his five-year United contract in June.

He was training at Greater Manchester non-league club Flixton FC in an attempt to keep up his fitness, and has been offered a contract by La Liga side Getafe.

Getafe president Angel Torres told Spanish radio: "I've been working on this for four months. He's now a free agent. We've made him a final offer.

"He's previously played for Manchester [United] and Aston Villa, so it's not as if he's coming from anywhere. I know he's got offers from Qatar and from a number of other players. We need to be patient, not put pressure on him, and let him decide for himself."