CHELSEA have finally confirmed Jadon Sancho’s loan move from Manchester United – nearly 21 hours AFTER the transfer deadline.
The ex-England winger, 24, has switched for the rest of the season – with the Blues then obliged to buy him for a reported £23milion fee.
That means the Red Devils will make a staggering £50m loss on the former Borussia Dortmund star.
Sancho told the Chelsea website: “I’m really excited to be here. London is where I grew up and I’m happy to be back.
“The manager spoke to me about the project and, for a young player, it’s exciting. Hopefully I can bring goals and assists to the Bridge.”
It’s claimed Chelsea’s obligation will only kick in if they finish above 14th place in the Premier League.
Should they do so, Sancho would then sign a long-term contract at Stamford Bridge.
A handful of other moves were completed after the window shut at 11pm on Friday – as deal sheets were submitted in time to be finalised by 1am on Saturday.
But bizarrely Chelsea only announced Sancho’s move at 7.30pm on Saturday.
Sky Sports claim that Chelsea chiefs see the chance to sign Sancho “as too good to turn down”.
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And the West London club are confident they can “get the best out of him” despite a troubled time at Old Trafford.
Chelsea are able to afford the winger as Raheem Sterling has left the club to sign for Arsenal on a season-long loan.
Sancho‘s move comes three years after United bought him from Dortmund for £73million.
But he has had a nightmare since returning to his homeland, finding the back of the net just 12 times in 83 games for Man Utd.
He also had a huge public spat with Erik ten Hag that saw him banished from the squad before being loaned back to Dortmund in January.
In a bombshell Instagram post last September, Sancho said he was made a “scapegoat” by the manager after he was left out a matchday squad for supposedly not performing in training.
The player then refused to apologise to Ten Hag and he was subsequently banned from all first-team facilities at the club’s training ground.
He appeared to have resolved his dispute with the Dutchman over the summer, having featured in pre-season and the Community Shield loss to Manchester City.
But the rumours continued to swirl around his departure and now Chelsea have got their man.
Sancho joins despite the Blues already bringing in Pedro Neto and Joao Felix in attacking areas this summer.
