Yes they thought they had him. When the list came through I didn't recognise his name at all as one that had been mentioned in months or years gone by, probably because he wasn't our player. Looks a talent though.
I do think there is a wider issue in all of this. City have poached many players from 10 upwards to 16, in many ways devouring United's but also our and Liverpool's youth set up (not to mention the provincial teams). There is little doubt though there is a feeling they are getting stuck, much like at Chelsea and most want to be sent on the loan merry-go-round like Chelsea operate. I suspect ourselves and the other clubs (Liverpool can't currently) will be aggressive in targeting their players at 16. They will have got their education up to GCSE at that point and may well be a strategic point to leave to join academies where there are less of a backlog, a clearer pathway and a much more rooted tradition of youth involvement in the first team.
I would love us to be actively pursuing Sancho from City.
