Jadon Sancho feelings clear as Man Utd look to sign his ‘dressing room friend’ at Chelsea in January -Report

Jadon Sancho feelings clear as Man Utd look to sign his ‘dressing room friend’ at Chelsea in January -Report

The news that Manchester United is interested in signing Christopher Nkunku won’t make Jadon Sancho very happy, especially since they developed a “close bond” with the Chelsea star.

Christopher Nkunku, who has struggled for playing time at Chelsea this season, is being targeted by Manchester United.

Under Enzo Maresca, the Frenchman, who cost £52 million to join the Blues from RB Leipzig in 2023, has only made one Premier League start.

Although he has been playing a lot of cup football and has a respectable nine goals in seven Conference League and Carabao Cup appearances, his failure to establish himself in Chelsea’s starting lineup has raised questions about his long-term future at Stamford Bridge.

French publication L’Equipe claims that United has asked about Nkunku’s availability.

That said, it’s understood that the forward is still a key part of Chelsea’s plans and many within the club are keen for him to stay, chief among them being Jadon Sancho.

According to GiveMeSport, the England ace, who joined Chelsea on loan from United in the summer, has a ‘close bond’ with Nkunku off the pitch.

Their friendship off it has already translated into on-field cohesion, with Sancho, 24, setting Nkunku up for a late winner against Bournemouth on his debut back in August

After the game, Sancho uploaded a photo of the pair celebrating the goal on Instagram, stating that he was “delighted” to have made his Blues bow. In response, Nkunku wrote: “Thank you my bro,” presumably in reference to Sancho’s assist.

Given their closeness, Sancho will likely be sad to see Nkunku exit the club in January, not least to his former club, who he left in acrimonious circumstances having failed to live up to his £73m price tag and falling out with now former boss Erik ten Hag.

Since his Blues debut, Sancho has contributed two more assists but is yet to buckle the net in Chelsea blue. He began the season with a run of starts in the Premier League but has sat out the club’s last six games in all competitions after picking up a knock and suffering a mild illness.

The ex-Dortmund man, who grew up supporting Chelsea, will join the Blues permanently at the end of the season provided Maresca’s men don’t capitulate over the remaining two-thirds of the campaign.

Included in the loan agreement between Chelsea and United is a £20m plus £5m obligation to buy clause, which will be activated providing Chelsea finish above 15th in the league.

Nkunku, meanwhile, has largely struggled to get his career in England going. After blasting 58 goals in 88 games in his final two seasons at Leipzig, hopes were high that the ex-PSG man would solve Chelsea’s long-standing attacking problems.

But a series of ill-timed injuries derailed his first season in west London and limited him to just two starts in all competitions.

So far this term, he’s made 17 appearances and netted 10 goals, six of which have come in the Conference League