Erik ten Hag warns Jadon Sancho to cope with not being picked for Manchester United games

United manager left Sancho out of win against Fulham last week and has offered no assurances he will play against Brighton on Saturday

Jadon Sancho and his Manchester United team-mates have been warned they must deal with being left out of matchday squads with the right attitude to have a future at the club.
United manager Erik ten Hag left Sancho out of his 20-man squad for the Premier League opening-day win against Fulham last week. The England forward suffered an ear infection before the game but was fit enough to play, it was revealed.
Sancho was dropped from the squad last season after Ten Hag insisted his training performances were below standard, which the player denied. United then loaned him out to Borussia Dortmund but he was back in Ten Hag’s squad in pre-season.
The Dutch coach says all players must face time on the bench or out of the squad this season as he looks to get the club back into the top four. He offered no guarantees that Sancho would be back in the squad for the lunchtime clash against Brighton on Saturday.
“We have a squad, I hope we will have a squad with double positioning and when we go into the season after September 1, that means you can’t select all the players but you need them all throughout the season,” said Ten Hag.
“We have to manage it, the attitude of the players is very important, sometimes they will be disappointed they have to deal with it, you win as a squad. The prizes are decided next May and until then we need all the players in the squad and highly motivated, that is not an expectation, that is a demand on the squad.”
Ten Hag will be without Victor Lindelof at Brighton as the Sweden centre-back has a toe injury, while Luke Shaw and Rasmus Hojlund are also out.
United allowed Facundo Pellistri to join Panathinaikos this week. “He is a very talented player and made good progress last season but we have a lot of competition in wide areas so we looked at what we need as a squad but also what the player needs,” said Ten Hag.
“We couldn’t give him the right perspective in this club but he has high potential and what he needs is games to progress. He will get that opportunity at Panathinaikos and will follow his progress.”