Dan Ashworth: Manchester United agree deal to hire Newcastle sporting director – Sky Sports
Football
Newcastle placed sporting director Dan Ashworth on gardening leave in February after he revealed his desire to join Manchester United; Sir Jim Ratcliffe has overseen an overhaul of Man Utd’s hierarchy since taking over earlier this year
Monday 1 July 2024 09:59, UK
Manchester United have reached a deal with Newcastle to hire their sporting director Dan Ashworth.
The 53-year-old will commence his new role at Old Trafford with immediate effect.
Newcastle initially were demanding £20m compensation for the former FA Technical Director, with Man Utd looking to pay a fraction of that, but a compromise has been reached in the last few days.
The deal also helped Newcastle comply with Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) this month. Ashworth has been on gardening leave at Newcastle since February.
The hiring of Ashworth is the latest hierarchical hire done by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and the new INEOS minority investors since they took over the club.
Omar Berrada joined from Manchester City as United’s new chief executive, while Jason Wilcox arrived as new academy director from Southampton.
Sky Sports News senior reporter Melissa Reddy:
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“It’s unsurprising that Man Utd have chosen him to take over at as sporting director under INEOS who are looking to reshape their football operations at the club.
“Ashworth’s pedigree and esteem are well-known in the game. He is widely regarded as one of the best operators in Europe and actually the best in England given his body of work.
“You stretch back to his time at West Brom. There he delivered two promotions and a top-half Premier League finish. His work was so promising that he got poached by the England FA.
“There for the national team, he introduced an element that is seen as one of the key factors of their continued success, even now, and that’s the England DNA. A defined way of playing across all age groups.
“We saw the impact of that at the 2018 World Cup and after that tournament, Ashworth left the FA and was poached by Brighton, who wanted him to be in charge of remodelling them and securing their status as a Premier League club.
“He did more than that – he helped them become one of the best-run clubs in the world. Their recruitment model is the envy of clubs the world over.
“That attracted the PIF-powered Newcastle. Even though they have spent a lot, they have spent quite smartly under his watch and he has modernised a lot of their operations.”
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