Bundesliga

2020-03-02T21:25:00Z

Sancho: MD24's Man of the Matchday

Jadon Sancho has found a home away from home at the Signal Iduna Park, playing in front of Borussia Dortmund's famed Yellow Wall.
Jadon Sancho has found a home away from home at the Signal Iduna Park, playing in front of Borussia Dortmund's famed Yellow Wall.

As a 17-year-old moving to a new country, needing to speak a new language to new employers, Jadon Sancho took a huge leap of faith three years ago, but the former Manchester City youth player has found a home away from home at Borussia Dortmund's Signal Iduna Park.

It was in front of the famous Yellow Wall that Sancho scored his first Bundesliga goal, in a coming-of-age performance against Bayer Leverkusen back in April 2018. He added two assists to the cause in a 4-0 win that day, and hasn't looked back since.

Fast forward to his winner in the 1-0 victory over Freiburg on Matchday 24 and Sancho is not only one of the most potent forwards in Europe, but the 19-year-old England international is also a bona fide BVB talisman.

With new partner-in-crime Erling Haaland among the substitutes and captain Marco Reus absent through injury, Sancho shouldered the bulk of his side's goalscoring burden - and he did so emphatically with the only goal of the game.

His strike was his 14th of the campaign and, alongside his 14 assists, Sancho tops both charts for Dortmund in 2019/20. No player has been involved in more Bundesliga goals so far this season and Sancho has already bettered his 2018/19 return of 13 goals and 14 assists.

Not only that, he has 11 goals and nine assists from his last 13 Bundesliga matches, a stunning spell of form that has been underlined in permanent marker thanks to a remarkable run at the Signal Iduna Park that prompted a pre-match interviewer to ask the Londoner if he can even recall the last time he failed to score in front of a home crowd. Sancho replied: "That's a hard one, I don't know. I can't remember."

Watch: Sancho and Haaland - Dortmund's teenaged dream team

You can forgive Sancho's forgetfulness as his latest home league effort saw the Londoner score for the seventh time in succession at Dortmund's famed stadium - a record that began in the 3-3 draw with Paderborn on Matchday 12. In fact, the last time the flying winger fired a blank at home in the Bundesliga was in the 2-2 draw against Werder Bremen back on 28 September 2019 - an entire five (yes, FIVE!) months ago.

During his subsequent seven-game run, Sancho has notched five assists and eight goals, while only Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored in more consecutive matches at the Signal Iduna Park (11) than Sancho. Coming up to three years into life in North-Rhine Westphalia, Sancho is clearly comfortable in his surrounds and the downpour that greeted both teams on Matchday 24 made the 11-cap England man feel even more at home.

Watch: Sancho's incredible Hinrunde highlight reel

"I'm full of confidence," he explained after the final whistle. "The fans always support me. I'm so happy to play here and score goals here. "Today's weather was typical of London, so I felt right at home."

Sancho's latest effort took his overall record to 16 goals and 23 assists from 33 games in his home away from home, meaning 59 per cent of his 27 Bundesliga goals and 72 per cent of his top-flight assists have come in front of his own fans. He’s also only lost three of those 33 games, winning 23 - or 70 per cent - of them in the process and drawing a further seven. Furthermore, Dortmund have never lost when Sancho has found the back of the net at the Signal Iduna Park.

Thriving against the backdrop of one of the most loyal, passionate sets of supporters in world football, there is no question the young lad from the English capital is made for Dortmund - and vice versa.

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