Chelsea will send Sancho back for £5m and prepare to confirm £30m Delap signing

Chelsea have decided against signing Jadon Sancho on a permanent basis and will pay a £5m penalty to send the winger back to Manchester United when his loan ends on 30 June.

Chelsea, who are set to announce the £30m signing of Liam Delap from Ipswich after finalising personal terms with the striker, loaned Sancho last summer with an obligation to buy for £25m.

However an option for Chelsea to pay a penalty clause to terminate the agreement allowed them to assess whether they wanted to buy the 25-year-old. Misgivings over Sancho’s consistency meant it was unlikely that Chelsea, who are weighing up a bid for Borussia Dortmund’s Jamie Gittens as they look to sign before the Club World Cup a right-footed winger capable of playing on the left, were going to commit themselves to him.

Enzo Maresca’s system relies on wide players. Sancho had an opportunity to press his case and his talent has flickered at times. He contributed to Chelsea qualifying for the Champions League and scored when they beat Real Betis in the Conference League final last week.

Yet Sancho, who struggled after joining Manchester United from Dortmund in 2021, was unable to hold down a regular starting place and experienced a long dip in form after Christmas. Chelsea think Sancho is talented and have been impressed with his attitude but fear he is not consistent enough. They could not strike an agreement for the former Dortmund to sign on a lower salary in line with the club’s wage policy.

Returning to United leaves Sancho, who has a year on his contract, in an awkward position. He cut an unhappy ­figure after moving to Old Trafford four years ago and joined Dortmund on loan after clashing with Erik ten Hag. Sancho had joined Chelsea by the time United fired Ten Hag and hired Ruben Amorim last November. It remains to be seen whether Amorim would want to look at Sancho in pre-season. United are looking to refresh their squad and sell unwanted players after missing out on European qualification.

A new goalkeeper is also a possibility for Chelsea. They are open to selling Robert Sánchez and Djordje Petrovic and they have asked Milan about Mike Maignan. The France No 1’s contract expires next year. Maignan, 30 next month, would become the oldest player in Chelsea’s squad.

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Chelsea have also made an inquiry for the Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford. However it is understood firmer interest for the 22-year-old is coming from Newcastle, who are set to miss out on Espanyol’s Joan García to Barcelona.

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