Former Manchester United and Chelsea winger Jadon Sancho has chosen his next destination after several months of free agency - and he won't be heading to LaLiga side Getafe.

The 26-year-old was released by Man Utd on 30 June when his five-year contract expired. It was no surprise that the club refrained from exercising the one-year extension in his deal, as they had been desperate to cut their losses for years.

Sancho has gone down as one of the worst signings in Man Utd and Premier League history. Acquired from Borussia Dortmund for €85 million in 2021, the former England international's career quickly went downhill.

He was unable to live up to his price tag and, in the summer of 2023, fell out with then-manager Erik ten Hag. After being exiled for six months, he was sent out on a series of loans to Borussia Dortmund, Chelsea and Aston Villa.

Such has been Sancho's fall from grace that Chelsea preferred to incur a €6m fine rather than actually sign him in 2025, as had been stipulated in their loan agreement with Man Utd, which included a purchase obligation.

Sancho heading to the Middle East

Having repeatedly failed to sell Sancho, Man Utd let his contract expire this summer. Despite links with several clubs in various countries, most notably his former side Dortmund, where he remains a fan favourite, the 26-year-old is still without a club.

A few weeks ago, reports suggested that Sancho had broad agreements with more than one club in the Middle East and that he was taking his time making a decision on which one to join.

The situation then took a twist when Spanish side Getafe came forward with an interest. The Madrid club have been desperately scrambling to bring in free agents in recent weeks following a poor start to the season.

Getafe have had issues with LaLiga's financial rules in recent years as they are a small club and lack commercial revenues, but they actually spent big this summer - €20 million were invested in new signings - after qualifying for the Conference League.

Despite this, head coach Jose Bordalas has been critical of the squad's construction and believes that he lacks the players to be able to compete on multiple fronts. The 62-year-old exploded after a 5-2 loss to Swiss side Lugano.

"The squad isn't enough to play in three competitions; it's not enough for even one," he thundered. "I feel deceived: the promises that were made to me have not been kept."

This prompted an equally angry response from the club's president, who told Bordalas that he was "free to leave." Despite the tension, the club clearly accept that the coach has a point.

After recruiting former Real Madrid captain Dani Carvajal on a free transfer, Getafe also wanted to bring in Sancho to bolster their numbers. However, MARCA now reports that the Englishman has rejected the chance to join the club.

It is reported that Getafe offered a significantly higher salary than the €400,000 reported in the English press, but the offer ultimately still fell short of Sancho's request to be paid €3m annually.

The club pointed to Sancho's disgraced former Man Utd teammate Mason Greenwood, who had enjoyed a successful season on loan at Getafe, as proof that they would be able to help the winger rebuild his ailing career, but it wasn't enough to convince him.

Instead, the Spanish outlet reports that Sancho is bound for the Middle East after all. While a specific club is not mentioned, it is claimed that he is on his way to Saudi Arabia rather than Qatar or the United Arab Emirates.

Although he is only 26, this will surely spell the end of Sancho's top-level European career. It's been only downhill for him over the past five years, and it is hard to imagine that he will be able to reconstruct his reputation in Saudi Arabia to a point where he could become attractive to elite European teams again.

His decline has been nothing short of remarkable. Shortly before his transfer to Man Utd, Sancho had an Estimated Transfer Value (ETV) of €108.7m; it now stands at just €11.7m - and even that feels generous for a player with nine competitive goals in three years.