During the entire 2024/25 summer transfer window at FC Barcelona, there was talk of the need to reinforce the left-wing position with a 'top' signing. The most mentioned name and the one that seemed to be more favored by the Barcelona sporting direction was Nico Williams from Athletic Club; however, due to difficulties in finalizing this transfer, the club considered other equally interesting names.
One of them was Jadon Sancho, a possible 'Plan B' that was not ruled out, especially after his outstanding second half of the 2023/24 season on loan at Borussia Dortmund. Despite having had little playing time in the first half of the season with Manchester United, his performance at the German club was truly interesting, showing himself to be an asset that, at the right price, could have been a valuable addition to bolster the club's offensive line.
However, here lay the main difficulty of the operation. Even though the 'Red Devils' wanted to offload him as soon as possible, they were not willing to do so at any price. They set a minimum asking price of around 47-48 million euros, in addition to the player's salary of approximately 16 million euros gross (8 million net), making the operation something difficult to afford for the Catalan squad, and therefore it was abandoned, joining other negotiations for wingers that the Barcelona team couldn't finalize.
The 'bargain' price at which Chelsea signed Jadon Sancho
Now, Chelsea FC has indeed not missed the opportunity to secure the services of the London forward. Taking advantage of the last day of the transfer window, the 'Blues' made a move for the talented winger, managing to secure his loan for the 2024/25 season, with the particularity that a mandatory buyout clause was included in the agreement.
This is where Enzo Maresca's team has come out on top. Why? Leveraging Manchester United's need to let go of the winger and the rush of the last day of the market, the Londoners, as reported by 'The Athletic,' managed to include a buyout clause of around 30 million euros, significantly reducing the economic demands of the 'Red Devils' and making a move that, if Jadon Sancho reaches his best level at Stamford Bridge, could turn out to be a real coup.