England manager Gareth Southgate has already made his feelings clear on the prospect of Jadon Sancho being selected for his Euro 2024 squad.
Sancho looked back to his relentless best as Borussia Dortmund took a slender 1-0 advantage over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League semi-final first leg.
The 24-year-old completed more dribbles by half-time of Wednesday night’s encounter than he managed in any of his 58 Premier League appearances for Manchester United.
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Sancho scored just 12 goals in his 82 United appearances before falling out with manager Erik ten Hag, but his rejuvenated form has raised questions regarding not only his Old Trafford future, but also whether he can sneak his way into Southgate’s plans for the upcoming European Championships.
Sancho has made 23 appearances for the Three Lions under Southgate, the last of which came from the bench in a 5-1 win against Andorra in September 2021.
However, Southgate has previously said the “door is open” for players to prove themselves ahead of the summer.
Speaking back in November, the England boss said: "As I said, there are a few players who aren't in this squad -- either they are injured or the door is absolutely open. We will always be open to that."
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Two months prior, discussing Sancho's in particular, the Three Lions boss said: “I think that's the challenge for him now.
“It's been the best part of a couple of years since we worked with him, it's difficult to say exactly the position that he finds himself and where he is with it all.
“But for every player that's not with us, there is always an opportunity if they can seize the form and have the (right) level of performance.”
Sancho finished the match with 12 successful dribbles, the most completed by a player in this season’s Champions League, and the most by anyone since Lionel Messi against United in April 2008 (16).
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Despite much talk of his impressive performance however, Sancho didn’t allow himself to think beyond Dortmund’s second leg in Paris next Tuesday.
He told CBS: "When we have our fans we are so motivated from the start. But this tie is not over, we still have to go to Paris and get the job done.
"I appreciate all the compliments but I take it game by game. Performances like today, I hope can carry on.
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"I came here at 17, they gave me the opportunity to play professional football and I am delighted to be welcomed back and I am focused on the present right now."
Chris Byfield