‘This is not FIFA!’ Paul Ince calls out Jadon Sancho over £73million winger’s showboating

‘This is not FIFA!’ Paul Ince calls out Jadon Sancho over £73million winger’s showboating… and also demands that Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial ‘play proper football’

  • Paul Ince has laid into Jadon Sancho for not producing for Manchester United 
  • He accused Sancho, Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial of showboating 
  • The United legend said Sancho needed to learn that football ‘is not FIFA’ 


Former Manchester United player Paul Ince has launched a withering attack on new winger Jadon Sancho, accusing him – together with Jesse Lingard and Anthony Martial – of showboating instead of playing ‘proper football’.

Sancho joined United with much fanfare for £73million in the summer, off the back of being one of the best wingers in the Bundesliga at Borussia Dortmund.

But the England international has found settling at Old Trafford challenging so far, starting just twice in the Premier League and not yet completing a full 90 minutes in the league. 

Paul Ince has hit out at Jadon Sancho for showboating on the pitch for Manchester United

Ince said Sancho (pictured) and Jesse Lingard need to 'play proper football' and not show off

Ince said Lingard (pictured) and Sancho are into dribbling and 'all these flicks'

Ince said Sancho (left) and Jesse Lingard (right) need to ‘play proper football’ and not show off

Ince said Sancho should learn 'it's not FIFA'

Ince said Sancho should learn ‘it’s not FIFA’

Having scored 50 goals and produced 64 assists in 137 matches for Dortmund, Sancho is yet to show his best form in his new colours – the 21-year-old has no goals or assists for United in his first seven appearances. 

Ince chastised the tricky winger for appearing to be more concerned with showing off his skills than producing on the pitch. 

‘I get that Sancho is still learning, he’s still young,’ Ince told The United Stand. 

‘But this is not a FIFA game, it’s not all about dribbling and dribbling and trying to beat two, three, four players or little flicks and that.

‘Yeah, it’s nice when they come off but the likes of Sancho and Lingard, all these flicks, just play proper football.’

Ince, who was a bedrock of the Red Devils’ midfield in the 90s, said the way the United trio played irritated him and compared them to Ryan Giggs, the young superstar from his playing days.

Ince compared the United trio to Ryan Giggs, who was the starlet of the side when Ince played

Ince compared the United trio to Ryan Giggs, who was the starlet of the side when Ince played

‘Honestly, it winds me up! If you watch players like Giggs, they get it and they pass, one-twos and get one-on-one… we just want to keep running with the ball, trying little flicks, little backheels.

‘That’s what I saw with Martial, I saw it at times with Lingard and with Sancho and that’s where they need to learn that it’s not all about dribbling. Sometimes you can pass your way through players and get yourself in the box.’

Ince continued to vent his frustration over Martial, who he perceived to not be committed to United by his attitude in the club’s 1-0 loss to West Ham in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday.

Ince also slammed Anthony Martial, claiming he 'didn't want to be out there' against West Ham

Ince also slammed Anthony Martial, claiming he ‘didn’t want to be out there’ against West Ham

‘How many people are ahead of Martial now? Was he going to go in the transfer window? Ole (Gunnar Solskjaer) said no and he’s still part of his plans,’ he said.

‘I just looked at Martial’s body language and I was thinking, “Does he actually want to be out there on a Wednesday night?”, and some players do that. When they’re not involved in the first team on a Saturday, they think: “Why am I playing in the Carabao Cup?!”

‘You sense that body language with Martial. He didn’t want to be out there.’

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