Tuesday, November 02, 2021
“007” joke comes from Germany
Nasty James Bond ridicule against Sancho
Jadon Sancho is moving from Borussia Dortmund to Manchester United with great expectations. For the 21-year-old Englishman, it should be the next step in his career. But so far he has not fulfilled the hopes. Instead, there is criticism. Now even a nasty and creative one.
Manchester United had the services of Jadon Sancho cost 85 million euros. 85 million euros that were transferred to Borussia Dortmund for a 21-year-old Englishman whose market value in March 2020 was 130 million euros. Well invested, one would think. The London native, who trained with city rivals Manchester City, is a promise for the future of the club and the national team. But Sancho cannot currently deliver what is expected of him.
He has only received 298 minutes of play from United coach Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. He was not on the pitch for three games, most recently in the top games against Liverpool and Tottenham. He didn’t even get a full game play. He was only in the starting line-up three times in the league.
In the past season he had shone at BVB. In 38 competitive games he was involved in 37 goals. His lull is all the more noticeable now – with one big but: He also only scored in the Bundesliga for the first time in January, having only given four assists in the first twelve appearances. In the Champions League, however, he had previously been a successful goalscorer.
But time and rest is nothing that fans and experts leave football stars. In England, a nasty tip is making the rounds against him: Sancho as James Bond. Not because he has the determination and accuracy of the film agent, but because the code “007” suits him: a meager zero goals and zero assists in seven Premier League games. This teasing was brought up by the German broadcaster Sky Sport, which showed Sancho in a Bond suit with the addition “They call me 007”. English newspapers picked this up, the new nickname was born.
“A world class talent”
Jürgen Klopp, coach of the competitor Liverpool, takes Sancho against the harsh criticism on the island in protection. “Jadon Sancho is a world-class talent. He has everything to become one of the best players in the world in the future,” he said, according to Sky Sport. BVB managing director had said in the Sport1 one-two: “It hurts my soul that he is so neglected. I love Jadon, when you see him you get tears in your eyes. His problem is, I think that he is not that seeded in the English national team. ”
He was not considered by national coach Gareth Southgate in September for the World Cup qualification. In October he was back at the previous international matches, played against Andorra, gave two assists in the 5-0 win and still had to sit on the bench against Hungary. Southgate had even said for a verbal blow: “Has he earned it with these accomplishments in the last few weeks? Well, maybe not.”
These are not good prerequisites for Sancho, appreciation sounds different. In the evening Man United must play in the Champions League at Atalanta Bergamo (21 clock) compete, on Saturday follows the league duel against city rivals City (1.30 p.m., both in the ntv.de live ticker). The English lead their group in the Champions League, a ray of hope for coach Solskjaer, who has long been criticized. In the league, the team recently climbed to fifth place, the 3-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur, after their coach Nuno Espirito Santo had to leave after just four months, may have saved his job a little longer. Whether that will also help Sancho, however, is questionable. It is quite possible that the nickname “007” still haunts him a little, the victory finally came without him.