Dortmund insist Sancho will stay at club this season

Borussia Dortmund’s sporting director Michael Zorc has said the “decision is final” that Jadon Sancho will remain with the club this season.

The England international is a target for Manchester United but they are unwilling to meet the Bundesliga side’s €120 million (Dh519m) valuation. Dortmund set yesterday – the day they travelled to their pre-season training camp – as the deadline for a deal to be agreed. They reached Bad Regaz in Switzerland with nothing in place.

That prompted Zorc to confidently announce Sancho would not be going anywhere, although some UK media outlets are reporting that a deal was still in the pipeline. “We plan on having Sancho in our team this season, the decision is final. I think that answers all our questions,” he said.

Negotiations appear to have been made more difficult by Zorc’s revelation the 20-yearold’s contract has three years left to run and not two as originally thought.

“Last summer we adjusted the salary to the performance development of Jadon. In this context, we have extended the contract until 2023,” he said.

Dortmund have two matches during their training camp, against Austrian sides SCR Altach tomorrow and Austria Vienna on Sunday.

They set the deadline for Sancho because they wanted undisturbed preparation for the new Bundesliga season. The new campaign starts on September 18, with the transfer deadline for international deals on October 5.

Last week, United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer admitted signing Sancho presented a challenge but refused to be drawn on their pursuit. “We’re looking into all transfers differently. I’m not going to speak about individuals that are not our players,” he said.