“They didn’t believe me” – Watch Cristiano Ronaldo send emotional and warning message to Jadon Sancho as superstar is suspended from training with the first team squad

“They didn’t believe me” – Watch Cristiano Ronaldo send emotional and warning message to Jadon Sancho as superstar is suspended from training with the first team squad

Manchester United forward Jadon Sancho’s long-term future at Old Trafford is currently unclear after he became embroiled in a public war of words with Erik ten Hag

Two years after joining Manchester United in a blockbuster £73million deal, Jadon Sancho’s career is already at a crossroads.

The former Borussia Dortmund star has struggled to replicate the dazzling performances that persuaded the Old Trafford hierarchy to sanction such a significant outlay, and now the forward’s attitude off the pitch has come into question in the wake of a public war of words with Erik ten Hag.

After Ten Hag made it clear that Sancho had been dropped from the first-team squad prior to the international break because of his poor training performances, the 23-year-old furiously hit back on social media, claiming the Dutchman’s comments were “untrue”.

Jadon Sancho seen arriving at Man Utd training for lone session after Erik ten Hag ban

Unfortunately for Sancho, Ten Hag has already proven he has no tolerance when it comes to insubordination. It seems, though, that the forward has now heeded the warning of last year’s saga with Cristiano Ronaldo.

The former Ajax chief did not take kindly to Ronaldo’s attempts to undermine him in public when the Portuguese star gave a scathing interview on his manager – and the club in general – to Piers Morgan back in November.

That interview had been preceded by Ronaldo storming down the tunnel in a strop after refusing to come on as a substitute in a 2-0 win over Tottenham.

From that point on, the writing was on the wall for the Old Trafford icon. He was shipped out of the club just weeks after his brutal interview with Morgan and subsequently moved to Saudi Arabia to join Al-Nassr.

Sancho’s heated social media statement hitting out at his manager has, unsurprisingly, also not been well received.

As well as slamming Ten Hag’s claims about his training performance, Sancho made it clear that he felt he had been turned into a “scapegoat” during his time at the club.

Manchester United released a statement on Thursday confirming that Sancho would remain on a “personal training programme” away from the first team until a “squad discipline issue” had been resolved.

Things have escalated even further since, though, with The Athletic claiming that Sancho refused to issue an apology to Ten Hag when he was asked to do so.

Ten Hag, in turn, has responded by banishing the player from first-team training, forcing Sancho to use the club’s academy facilities until a resolution can be found. He will not be considered for selection this weekend when United host Brighton or for future fixtures.

Even if Sancho does agree to apologise to his manager, it’s hard to see a way back for a player who was touted as one of the most exciting attacking prospects in Europe just a couple of years ago.

With both parties believed to be open to a parting of ways once the transfer window reopens, Sancho could emulate Ronaldo’s path in more ways than one by quitting Old Trafford after falling foul of Ten Hag.