After a long transfer saga dating back to last summer, United agreed to a fee for the 21-year-old on July 1 but the deal could not be completed until after the conclusion of Euro 2020.
Almost two weeks ago, shortly after England’s heartbreaking penalty shootout defeat against Italy – in which Sancho missed one of the spot-kicks – he visited United’s Carrington training complex to undergo a medical.
But it has taken a while for the final details of the deal to be rubber-stamped and now, at last, the Premier League giants have formally announced Sancho’s arrival, bringing to an end his four-year stay in Germany.
Sancho spent two years in the academy of United’s fierce rivals Manchester City, having started his career at Watford, but left to join Dortmund in 2017 as he sought more regular first-team football.
Despite his tender years, Sancho has recorded double figures for assists in each of the last three seasons, contributing to 83 goals in 104 Bundesliga appearances for Dortmund.
Despite a series of niggling injuries and loss of form at the start of last season, he was in electric form after the turn of the year, registering six goals and six assists in 10 league matches before picking up another injury.
That ruled him out of England’s March friendlies, though he was still selected in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the European Championships and started in the side’s 4-0 destruction of Ukraine in the quarter-finals.
Sancho’s £72.9m move to Old Trafford sees him become the fourth most expensive signing in the club’s history, behind Paul Pogba (£89m), Harry Maguire (£80m), and Romelu Lukaku (£75m).
The youngster has only played one competitive club game in England, part of the Dortmund team that lost 3-0 against Tottenham in the Champions League two years ago, while he missed BVB’s quarter-final clash with Manchester City through injury.
United have been in the market for a new right winger for several years and Sancho has always been their top target for the role, with the club now turning their attention to signing a new center-back partner for Maguire.
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