JADON SANCHO has been warned that he could be dropped by Chelsea if he does not adapt his game.
The winger, 24, was accused of being “too easy to play against” after he was watched at the weekend by a former Blues striker.
Sancho went into Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest having laid on an assist in each of his first three appearances for Chelsea.
In his latest outing, however, he failed to make much of an impact before being replaced by Mykhailo Mudryk late on.
Watching on for The Times was former Blue Tony Cascarino.
In his subsequent column, the ex-striker claimed that he had been tasked with specifically watching out for Sancho – and that he came away not overly impressed.
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“There were no big mistakes, everything was neat and tidy, he played short passes that were accurate,” Cascarino wrote of Sancho’s display. “There was nothing to complain about, or that a pundit could pull apart in analysis on television.
“But he’s playing for Chelsea. This is a club that has high expectations of players, especially attacking ones. Being OK, which is what he was, is a problem.
“The truth is that he made it easy for Nottingham Forest’s right-back Ola Aina to play against him.
“There is no question Sancho is a good player, and his touch is almost always really sound, but he plays such a conservative game.
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“He never got into a physical battle with Aina and never tried to take him on. Sancho is not slow but he doesn’t have that burst of acceleration to get at defenders.”
Cascarino went on to compare Sancho’s performance with that of Noni Madueke, who scored Chelsea’s equaliser.
The former Republic of Ireland international felt that Madueke caused Forest far more problems due to his speed, directness and ability to get to the byline.
He then added: “Cristiano Ronaldo, Eden Hazard, Gareth Bale and the other best wingers of recent times at the biggest teams in the Premier League have always wanted to overwhelm the full-back marking them, using power and speed to beat them physically.
“Sancho needs to get a bit stronger, and try to develop so that he can have a more significant change of pace.
“That will allow him to keep a defender guessing – at the moment, the full-back knows there is very little chance of him trying to get to the byline.”
Cascarino also warned that Sancho could be dropped by Chelsea, given the other options they possess.
He specifically named Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto and Mudryk as threats to his place in the starting XI.
‘A GREAT FEELING’
Sancho arrived at Chelsea on a season-long loan deal from Manchester United on transfer deadline day.
Enzo Maresca’s side have an obligation to buy Sancho for between £20-25million at the end of the season, provided that they finish in the top 14.
Following the Blues’ recent 4-2 win over Brighton, Sancho lifted the lid on how he had been settling in at Chelsea.
He said: “Overall, I was just happy to play at Stamford Bridge for the first time as a Chelsea player.
“It was a great feeling and I really appreciated the reception I got from the fans.
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“It was a great feeling [to get a standing ovation from the fans] and my family and friends were in the crowd for the game, so that made it extra special.
“I’m happy to have been able to assist for goals in recent games, I’m settling in well here and I just want to keep this momentum going and keep being able to assist my team-mates. Or even get a first goal, that would be nice.”
Chelsea player ratings vs Forest: Madueke shines again but hot-head Jackson too busy arguing
CHELSEA were held by ten-man Nottingham Forest as frustration filled Stamford Bridge.
Noni Madueke cancelled out Chris Wood’s opener but the Blues couldn’t find a winner.
And frustrations boiled over with a mass brawl in added time.
Here’s how SunSport’s Jack Figg rated the Blues stars.
Robert Sanchez – 8
Excellent positioning to snuff out Forest counter on hour mark and made two sensational late saves to deny the visitor’s a winner.
Malo Gusto – 6
Wasn’t able to prevent Nikola Milenkovic’s flick on to set up Wood’s opener but he produced a great block to deny Gibbs-White in the box.
Wesley Fofana – 7
Forming a good partnership at the back with Colwill. Finally some consistency at centre-half for Chelsea.
Levi Colwill – 7
Made a huge block to prevent Yates in the first half. John Terry-esque defending.
Marc Cucurella – 5
Lacked attacking creativity down the left having filled in at centre-back at times. Failed to form much of a threat with Sancho.
Moises Caicedo – 6
Agonisingly close to getting ahead of Wood to prevent the Forest opener. Took the role as deep-lying midfielder in front of back line.
Enzo Fernandez – 5
Still looks to be finding his best position under Maresca. Not a natural holding midfielder but denied preferred advanced role by Palmer.
Cole Palmer – 6
Looked lively when afforded space in the centre but the Chelsea superstar saw a huge chance saved thanks to Matz Sels double save.
Noni Madueke – 8
Constant threat down the right side with his goal well deserved. But the winger finds himself guilty of making the wrong choice in the final third.
Jadon Sancho – 4
Largely absent throughout the match with Aina doing a stellar job in keeping the tricky forward quiet. Lacked killer instinct going forward.
Nicolas Jackson – 4
Apart from pressing, quiet throughout. Slow to react in the box in a frustrating sign of inconsistency after recent goalscoring form. Spent more time arguing with team-mates at points.
Subs
Joao Felix (for Fernandez 80 mins) – 6
Christopher Nkaunku (for Jackson 80 mins) – 6
Mykhailo Mudryk (for Sancho 89 mins) -5
Pedro Neto (for Madueke 89 mins) – 6
Tosin Adarabioyo (for Colwill 90+3 mins) – 5
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
