Manchester United have been in the process of negotiating with Jadon Sancho for the better part of the transfer window - a deal that, should it materialise - would be a British record at £108m.
Last month, however, Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc said the club had extended Sancho's Dortmund contract to 2023 and that his decision of staying was 'final'.
As Dortmund prepare to begin their Bundesliga campaign on Monday with a fixture against Duisberg, coach Lucien Favre, speaking to Swiss news agency SDS, seemed convinced that Sancho is going nowhere. "We need him, no question about it. Everyone was happy that he stayed.
"We don't need to talk long about his qualities - they are enormous. He scores and prepares many goals, can often make all the difference.
"But there are a few details that Sancho needs to improve. That's normal for a 20-year-old."
United, though, have reportedly continued negotiations as they have marked the right-wing as a priority position and their preference is to negotiate a deal comprising add-ons. However, the pace of the negotiations with Sancho's agent Emeka Obasi and intermediary Marco Lichtsteiner, acting on behalf of Dortmund, have been too slow for United's liking, with a resolution over Sancho's salary expectations and his agent's fees being a stumbling block.
Therefore, despite reportedly making some progress with Obasi recently, the team are also sizing up the likes of David Brooks, Douglas Costa and Ivan Perisic as possible options to Sancho.
It's not the first time United have gone after Sancho, as an attempt to sign him from Manchester City in 2017 was blocked and the winger ended up joining Dortmund for £8m.
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Ina Fassbender
