Man Utd coach reveals real reason why Jadon Sancho refused to apologise to Erik ten Hag

A coach at Manchester United has revealed why Jadon Sancho refused to apologize to Erik ten Hag after their bust-up. United paid £73 million to sign Sancho from Borussia Dortmund in 2021, but his career at the club faltered last September when Ten Hag froze him out of the first team.

Ten Hag was angered by comments Sancho made after the manager left him out of the squad for a defeat to Arsenal, citing Sancho’s lack of performance in training. In response, Sancho took to X and wrote: “Please don’t believe everything you read. I will not allow people saying things that is completely untrue, I have conducted myself very well in training this week. I believe there are other reasons for this matter that I won’t go into, I’ve been a scapegoat for a long time which isn’t fair!”

Sancho did not play for United again after refusing to apologize to Ten Hag and was loaned back to Dortmund in January until the end of the season. United coach and former Premier League striker Benni McCarthy has now explained Sancho’s refusal to apologize.

“I spoke to the manager and I said to him that you know the delicacy,” McCarthy, who joined United’s coaching staff in 2022, told 947. “I told him I think Jadon feels that if he apologizes, then he’s going to be classed as someone who doesn’t train hard, doesn’t work hard, and that everything said against him was true.

“If you are from the streets, no one wants to apologize because then you’re admitting you are not training well, you are lazy, everything you are accused of. Jadon wasn’t going to have that. The manager just said that all he wants is an apology.

“I spoke to Jadon as a coach, as a mentor, as a friend, and as someone who grew up on the streets and knows the code. But Jadon just wasn’t seeing it. He said, ‘I ain’t apologizing because if I do, I’m apologizing for being lazy, always being late, not giving my best. That’s what I’m apologizing for.’ And those were his reasons.”

Sancho has since helped Dortmund reach the Champions League final, where they will face Real Madrid at Wembley Stadium. Both Dortmund and Sancho are interested in making his move back to Germany permanent.