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Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has confirmed that Jadon Sancho could be deployed in a new role for the Red Devils this season. The England international has been named in the center-forward position for the Red Devils in pre-season games.
Rasmus Hojlund is set to miss six weeks with a hamstring injury which he suffered in Manchester United's pre-season encounter against Arsenal. In the Denmark international's absence, Ten Hag has used Sancho as a number nine.
Sancho started as the number nine in the Red Devils' 3-2 victory over Real Betis (July 31) and yesterday's 3-0 defeat to Liverpool (August 3). Following the loss to Liverpool, Ten Hag insisted that the 24-year-old is likely to keep his place for Manchester United's season openers. The Dutchman said, as quoted by ESPN:
"Yes, otherwise we wouldn't play with him there. That is what we can do if we don't have the availability of Rasmus, but of course, Joshua Zirkzee, he is coming in, he has started training, but also consider that he is not so long in training, so that will take time, and he has to adapt to English football and our way of playing as well. There is also, of course, Jadon, as a striker. We know he can play in wide areas, but also as a false striker, he's an option."
Ten Hag also insisted that while Marcus Rashford is an option up front, he is more comfortable on the left flank. He also claimed that Bruno Fernandes is an option in the number nine position. The former Ajax manager added:
"I think that Marcus has done it [played as a striker] before and he can do it, and it's definitely an option. But I think he is most productive from the left, starting wide and coming inside. So when he can arrive there, he is most effective. We have other options. We have Bruno Fernandes who can play as a striker as well."
Jadon Sancho has been a massive disappointment at Manchester United following his £73 million move from Borussia Dortmund in 2021. He has only managed to find the back of the net 12 times while producing six assists in 82 games for the Red Devils. He also went out of favor under Ten Hag and was shipped out on loan to Borussia Dortmund for the second half of last season.
Arne Slot claims he was not happy with Liverpool's performance despite their 3-0 win against Manchester United
Liverpool manager Arne Slot has claimed that he is not entirely pleased with how his side fared in their 3-0 win against Manchester United. The Reds absolutely destroyed their arch rivals at the Williams-Brice Stadium in South Carolina.
Fabio Carvalho (10'), Curtis Jones (36') and Kostas Tsimikas (61') found the back of the net for the Merseyside giants. However, Slot has insisted that his side could have done even better against Erik ten Hag's men. He said, via Liverpool FC's official website:
"Yes, I was – but not with all of them. We are very happy with the result, we scored some really nice goals. But I don't think we had enough control over the game because United were threatening us more than a few times. It's a 3-0 win but the score could have been different tonight as well."
Liverpool have won all three friendlies in their pre-season tour of the United States. They will take on Sevilla in a friendly on August 11 while Manchester United will lock horns against rivals Manchester City in the Community Shield at Wembley on August 10.
