Jadon Sancho thinks Chelsea are about to sign a top-drawer player after rejecting him

After heading out of the Stamford Bridge exit this summer, Jadon Sancho has already shown his love for the man likely to replace him at Chelsea. And he would know a thing or two about Jamie Gittens, having previously played in the same Borussia Dortmund line-up.

Sancho, 25, spent this season on loan in west London but failed to make enough of an impact to convince the Blues to sign him permanently. In fact, Chelsea paid parent club Manchester United £5million to circumvent his purchase clause in the hopes they could make better use of their funds.

And it appears Dortmund winger Gittens is the preferred option as he homes in on a return to Cobham this summer. Niko Kovac insisted his attacker only missed his side's Club World Cup win over Ulsan because of illness, but it's been suggested the omission was actually due to the fact that Gittens is on the verge of leaving. The Sun claim Chelsea are now on the verge of signing the winger in a £55.5m deal.

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Sancho previously impressed at the Westfalenstadion before returning to the club on a short-term loan last year. He struck up a bond with Gittens during that spell and reached out to his fellow Englishman last winter when the 20-year-old really started to take off as a first-team talent.

"He [Sancho] wrote to me to say, 'Keep it up,'" Gittens told the Dortmund website in December. "'It's your time to show everyone what you can do.' He is a top player and also a top friend."

Sancho also complimented Gittens in public last season after the youngster scored twice in a Champions League win over Club Brugge. The United winger commented on one of Gittens' Instagram posts by calling him a "balla [baller]" as a show of support for his work.

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has already confessed that the club will sign a new winger this summer after Mykhailo Mudryk missed more than half of this season. The Ukrainian tested positive for a banned substance and is facing a potential four-year ban as a result.

Add Sancho's departure into the equation, and Chelsea's need for reinforcements out wide becomes even more dire. Brazilian winger Estevao is due to arrive in England after completing his transfer from Palmeiras, but the 18-year-old will require some easing into his Premier League surroundings.

Gittens and Sancho spent just six months together as team-mates in Germany, but it's evident the latter made an impact in that time. And former Chelsea academy prospect Gittens admitted as much at the conclusion of a breakthrough 2023/24 campaign.

"I've learned a lot from Jadon," he told German outlet WAZ in July 2024. "For example, that I have to play with one or two touches more often, that I have to offer deeper runs more often. And when he plays, he enjoys himself; I've learned that too. Jadon is a friend."

Gittens spent a brief period of time training with Chelsea's academy as a youngster but never went full-time in their ranks. And it just so happens he made his Champions League debut in a 1-0 win over the Premier League giants in February 2023.

After scoring 12 goals in 49 appearances for Dortmund last season (both career highs), Gittens appears to have done enough to earn Chelsea's interest once again. And it seems as though Sancho is among his advocates as he prepares for a summer homecoming.

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