Rumour Mongering: Jadon Sancho Prefers Liverpool to Manchester United

There was a time when Liverpool fans convinced themselves the club was going to sign Timo Werner and Kai Havertz and Jadon Sancho this summer. And perhaps, once upon a time, they would have been able to bring in two of them.

Then coronavirus hit and the club’s stance has changed. Right or wrong, justified or not, they’re taking a wait and see approach, hoping for more clarity on the financial front before making and big moves. They’ve already lost Werner to that approach.

Havertz, meanwhile, is expected to join Werner at Chelsea and Sancho is most likely to end up at Manchester United if he leaves Borussia Dortmund this summer. But Germany’s Kicker is trying to put Liverpool back into the mix, at least for him.

They claim today that despite United’s interest, Sancho wants a Liverpool move. He wants a better shot at league and European titles. He wants a chance to work under Jürgen Klopp. That he would, in short, prefer Liverpool to United.

Given the standing of the two clubs at the moment, it’s a reasonable stance, but at the end of the day we don’t see Liverpool as legitimate contenders to sign a player who Dortmund’s Michael Zorc has insisted they will not sell for less than €120M.

To be honest, though, we struggle to see even United paying that much for Sancho right now. Which at the end of the day might explain why we’re getting a story today in Kicker about the player preferring Liverpool to their nearby rivals.

Namely, because Dortmund might be hoping that putting Liverpool’s name out there—and instilling in them a fear that if they hesitate the Reds might find the funds to come for him— will nudge United to pay a little more a little sooner for Sancho.

It’s easiest to imagine Sancho, still just 20 years old, staying at Dortmund another season. It’s hard but not impossible to imagine United paying up. This year at least, it’s impossible to imagine Liverpool spending €100M+ on any player.