Chelsea warned Jadon Sancho has 'fallen back into his old Man United ways'

Former Premier League midfielder Jamie O'Hara has accused Chelsea's Jadon Sancho of slipping back into his old ways from his Manchester United spell.

The 24-year-old winger, who is currently on a season-long loan at Stamford Bridge from United, started brightly but has recently been absent from Enzo Maresca's matchday squads, sparking rumours of unrest. Sancho's struggles at United have been well-documented since his £72m move from Borussia Dortmund three years ago.

Chelsea offered him a lifeline on transfer deadline day last summer, agreeing to a loan deal with an obligation to make it permanent for £25m if they finish in the top 14 of the Premier League. Sancho made an immediate impact at Chelsea, providing an assist in each of his first three appearances against Bournemouth, West Ham United and Brighton and Hove Albion.

However, he has since faded from the spotlight following two disappointing performances against Nottingham Forest and Liverpool. While Maresca has cited illness as the reason for his absence, O'Hara suspects that the issues that plagued him at Old Trafford could be resurfacing at Chelsea.

Speaking to Grosvenor Sport, O'Hara said: "Jadon Sancho's been given an opportunity at Chelsea to prove people wrong, but it hasn't happened yet. Manchester United spent a lot of money on him, and it didn't work out, so he's gone to Chelsea and showed signs of brilliance and confidence at the start, but he seems to have fallen back into his old ways since then."

Erik ten Hag seemingly had a pre-season reconciliation with Sancho, but the player still found himself out of favour at United. With the likes of Marcus Rashford, Alejandro Garnacho, Amad and Antony being preferred, Sancho was cut from the squad.

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O'Hara chimed in on the matter, highlighting the challenges Sancho faces at his new club, noting: "I think the problem with Sancho at Chelsea is that there are better players than him in that squad – Pedro Neto and Noni Madueke are more influential than him. He needs to try and produce moments when he gets the chance to impress, or he'll stay where he is in the pecking order.

"It's always going to be difficult when there's a big group of attacking players in the same squad, but I think Enzo Maresca has worked out that Sancho isn't as good as a lot of them." Sancho's return to training during the November international break suggests he's eager to fight for his place, yet his involvement in the upcoming Premier League game against Leicester City is uncertain.