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Arsenal legend Martin Keown has urged Jadon Sancho to take responsibility for his own failures and ‘be the bigger man’ in his apparent falling out with Erik ten Hag.

The former defender says Ten Hag has tried to put his arm around the player in the past, and it still hasn’t worked.

Speaking on White and Jordan earlier this morning, Keown told talkSPORT: “You’ve got to follow this all the way from the beginning – when Ten Hag came to the club I think he did brilliantly for the player, he took him out of the firing line and he took him away to Holland to to nurse him, there was talk of mental health issues, there was talk of injuries as well and he nurtured him and tried to get him back into the team.

“At no real point have I ever seen this Sancho play with any directness, with determination. He doesn’t strike me as being a player who, yes he’s an incredible talent and we saw that at Borussia Dortmund where he was taking defences apart, but I’m not seeing it, so why is that? Is there a lack of motivation or a lack of desire?

“The manager is looking for a performance in training, a work ethic, and first of all you’re going to be on time for training. If you’re late there’s a problem, they’re non-negotiables.

“This is about discipline and there’s a message for the group here, not just this player, that this is really important, it’s about spreading the message to the group of how you’re behaving. He’s not working hard enough in training, he doesn’t have the discipline, he’s not respecting the group or the staff, so he’s had to take him one step out .

“This is tough love for him, but Ten Hag tried the other approach, tried to put his arm around him and it doesn’t seem to be happening.

“When I was a young player many years ago Graham Taylor said to me, ‘When you come to a football club make sure they’re talking about you for years afterwards, make sure that your photographs are up around the building’.

“They’re not going to be there for Sancho, because he’s done nothing since he’s been at Manchester United.

“It’s not about whether a manager is getting the best out of him or not, you’ve got to get the best for himself and he should be holding his hand up and apologising to the manager.

“He got emotional and the manager has tried to wake him up, that’s what this is abou, and the player is not prepared to make an apology.

“I think he needs to be the bigger man. If I’m in his corner I’m telling him, ‘You go to the manager and you rescue your career’.”