BORUSSIA DORTMUND KNOCKED back the advances of one of Europe’s “super clubs” when questions were asked of Jadon Sancho, claims club CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke.
The 19-year-old winger continued his meteoric rise during the 2018-19 campaign.
Senior international recognition came his way with England, while helping Dortmund to challenge Bayern Munich for the Bundesliga title.
His efforts did not go unnoticed, with it suggested that the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid were monitoring the exciting former Manchester City winger.
Watzke has now revealed that questions were asked of the teenager’s future, telling Ruhr Nachrichten: “A chief of one of the super clubs asked me back in spring if there was a chance [to sign Sancho] but I told him straight away he should forget about it and he never contacted me again.
“He knew I meant what I said.”
Dortmund have stated at regular intervals that they have no intention of parting with Sancho any time soon.
They have him tied to a long-term contract and intend to be the ones of benefit from his immediate development.
There is an acceptance that keeping Sancho from the clutches of the biggest-spending sides in world football will be almost impossible in the long run, but for now he remains a vital part of Dortmund’s plans.
Watzke added: “There aren’t many 19-year-olds with such a potential.
“He is also not a player from the region or one who would have any connection to it.
When you have a player like Jadon Sancho, you must reassess the situation every single year. Everything else would not be honest.
“If a foreign player is not convinced that the club is right for him at the exact time, it just does not make any sense.”
Sancho was named in the Bundesliga Team of the Year in 2018-19, as he recorded 12 goals and 17 assists in the German top-flight.
He has already been back among the goals in this season’s DFL-Supercup and will be hoping to help Dortmund end their wait for title glory in the current campaign.
Those efforts are due to start on Saturday when Lucien Favre’s side open their season with a home date against Augsburg.
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Dortmund could so easily be a ‘superclub’, I don’t understand why they have so much difficulty hanging onto their best players, I’d consider them one of the top European clubs.
@Hardly Normal: because they are fan owned and don’t gouge themselves and Germany does not earn a fraction in TV rights globally of what the English league does.
@Hardly Normal: couldn’t agree more, they’re content to be second and cry about Bayern’s wealth
@Conor Heneghan: well that’s just nonsense. Dortmund don’t have the money to compete with the top European clubs, so have to compete through a better transfer policy. Nothing to do with being content and crying. Once players have certain wage demands Dortmund can’t afford them and have to move them on. They can’t magic money out of nothing, they don’t have a major backer the way other European elite teams do.