Man Utd face costly Jadon Sancho transfer problem despite Borussia Dortmund agreement

Jadon Sancho will return to Manchester United at the end of his loan spell – because Borussia Dortmund cannot afford to make the deal permanent.

Sancho is poised to return to former club Dortmund for the remainder of the season, ending his United exile following his fall-out with boss Erik ten Hag. Winger Sancho, who has not played for United since August and has been forced to train alone, is set to join the Dortmund squad at their winter training camp in Marbella within the next 48 hours.

Dortmund will pay United a loan fee of around £3million, but there is no agreement in place for the German side to keep Sancho on a full-time basis once that short-term deal expires. The Bundesliga club cannot afford Sancho's £250,000-a-week wages, which means he will return to United in the summer, where he has been frozen out by Ten Hag.

Despite Sancho's refusal to apologise for publicly undermining Ten Hag on social media, United are hoping the 23-year-old can rediscover his best form at Dortmund. That will improve United's chances of selling him for a decent fee in the summer, although there is an acceptance they will get nowhere near the £73m they paid Dortmund for him in 2021.

But United remain hopeful of recouping a significant chunk of that fee, which will be ploughed back into strengthening their squad in the summer. Sancho has contributed just 12 goals and six assists in 82 appearances for United, but they are hoping a return to Dortmund will revive his career.

Sancho played for Dortmund between 2017 and 2021 and excelled with 50 goals and 64 assists in 137 games for the club. He forged a brilliant understanding with Erling Haaland during that time and helped the club win the DFB Pokal in 2021.

United are also prepared to let