After months of courting and contractual disputes, Manchester United have finally reached an agreement to sign Dan Ashworth from Newcastle as their new sporting director.
Despite being one of the first names identified by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and recently incumbent INEOS setup, it’s taken months for Man United to get a deal ironed out for highly-rated English sporting director Dan Ashworth, who made no secret of his desire to take the job.
Ashworth, 53, was placed on gardening leave by Newcastle United back in February when he made it clear he wanted the move following an official approach and initially demanded a compensation package of a reported £20 million to let him go, with the Tyneside club refusing to budge on the matter.
However, a resolution has finally been found and after the two clubs reached a mutually beneficial agreement – one which reportedly helped the Saudi-owned club stay in line with profit and sustainability rules (PSR) – the former director of elite development at the FA will start work effective immediately.
🔴 Manchester United and Newcastle issue the following statement.#MUFC
Ashworth will join recently appointed technical director Jason Wilcox, who joined from Southampton, and ex-Manchester City and CFG executive Omar Berrada, who is also set to officially start work later this month.
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The three will operate under the stewardship of co-owner Ratcliffe and his right-hand man Sir Dave Brailsford, head of the INEOS Sports division and who alongside the likes of Ashworth will help bridge the gap between the footballing side of things and the executive board.
With Brailsford having been part of the British cycling revolution within Team GB and Team Sky cycling (now the INEOS Grenadiers), and Ashworth going from PE teacher to a footballing director at West Brom, Brighton and then Newcastle, there’s some established know-how to the appointments.
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Ashworth was also a player himself once – representing Norwich City at youth level before joining non-league Eastbourne Town – and although he’ll be more involved with managing the overall structure, strategy and recruitment than anywhere near coaching or anything like that, there’s an understanding of the game at a core level.
Meanwhile, there is also talk of a coaching appointment that would certainly prove popular with the Old Trafford faithful.
Both the club and Ashworth were so keen on getting a deal across the line that there was even talk of taking the dispute to court and Ratcliffe himself made a point of pressuring Newcastle, telling BBC Sport: “It doesn’t make sense for [him] to be sat around doing nothing for 18 months”.
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Nevertheless, the two clubs have finally ended the stalemate and confirmed the appointment on Monday, 1 July in a joint statement. It reads as follows:
“Newcastle United and Manchester United have reached an agreement for the immediate release of Dan Ashworth from his contractual obligations at Newcastle United.
“The terms of this agreement remain confidential between the clubs. Newcastle United thanks Dan for his services and wishes him well for the future.” The question is, will his impact be as transformative when it comes to footballing infrastructure as he has been in the past?
Featured Images — TNT Sports (via YouTube)/The Manc Group
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Phil Foden says he ‘feels sorry’ for Gareth Southgate and England players have to take blame
Emily Sergeant
Phil Foden has admitted in an honest recent interview that he “feels sorry” for England manager Gareth Southgate.
The Manchester City star, who is currently forming a crucial part of England‘s 26-man squad at UEFA Euro 2024 out in Germany, has given his take on the team’s underwhelming performances at European football’s flagship tournament, following their last-minute win against Slovakia in the round of 16 last Sunday night (30 June).
Ahead of the Three Lions facing Switzerland in the Quarter Finals this Saturday (6 July), the Stockport-born forward says the players in the squad “have got to take some of the blame” for the team’s performances.
Ultimately, the 24-year-old says he “feels sorry” for manager Gareth Southgate.
Phil Foden says he ‘feels sorry’ for Gareth Southgate / Credit: England & Phil Foden (via Instagram)
Speaking in a hard-hitting interview this week, Foden explained: “There has to be some leaders to get together and find out a solution to why it is not working, because there is only so much the manager can do.
“He sets you up in a system and tells you how to press, and if it’s not going like that, then you have to [work it out].”
Then, when asked about the pressure on Southgate throughout tournament so far, and going into Saturday’s crucial Quarter Final – which kicks off at 5pm – he gave his honest opinion on the situation, explaining: “I feel sorry for Gareth. In training, he has been telling us to press and be high up on the pitch, and I feel like sometimes, it has to come from the players.
“We have to be leaders. In games we could have got together a little bit more and worked out a solution.
“So yes, we have spoken about it more. If it happens again in a game, we can get together and find a solution, see where it is going wrong and adapt our press.”
Manchester United set to make up to 250 staff redundant in cost-cutting move
Emily Sergeant
Manchester United is set to make up to 250 staff redundant in a bid to cut costs, it is being reported.
Following on from Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his company INEOS’s completed purchase of a 27.7% stake in the Premier League club for a whopping £1.25 billion back in February, and his taking charge of football operations alongside it as part of the agreement, the Manchester-born billionaire has been reviewing the current running of the club ever since.
Most notably, Ratcliffe commissioned a cost review ahead of the 2024/25 football season, as his team not only moved to shake things up on the pitch, but also behind the scenes at Manchester United as a whole.
And now, it’s being widely reported by reputable sources such as Sky Sports News, BBC Sport, The Athletic, and more, that interim Chief Executive, Jean-Claude Blanc, informed staff yesterday lunchtime (3 July) that the club intends to make a wave of redundancies.
Manchester United is set to make up to 250 staff redundant / Credit: Javid Naderi | Mags (via Unsplash)
Sources at Old Trafford have indicated that the club will now follow a formal process to propose such redundancies.
Believed to be a decision that has not been taken lightly, the club will begin to consult with staff across all departments and levels – with the exception of the Manchester United Foundation, according to Sky News.
According to sources, the decision to propose redundancies was finally reached upon following several other alternatives being considered beforehand, but these would apparently have only had a short-term impact, and were therefore deemed unsuitable, given that the long-term goal is to return United back to success in the future.
It’s part of new co-owner, Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s, wider cost-cutting mission at the club / Credit: INEOS
The proposed redundancies also align with the Premier League’s new financial regulations.
And, as United’s costs have risen year-on-year, it’s now also understood that the size and shape of the club “structurally” does not reflect the its current performance.
Danny Jones -
1st July 2024 
