Manchester United reach agreement with Newcastle United for Dan Ashworth to become new sporting director
By Conor Keenan
Published 01/07/2024 at 18:48 GMT+1
Manchester United have agreed a compensation figure to release former Newcastle United sporting director from his gardening leave as the 53-year-old looks set to begin his role at Old Trafford immediately. Ashworth was placed on gardening leave in February after Newcastle demanded close to ÂŁ20 million in compensation, but a deal between the two clubs has now been reached.
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Manchester United and Newcastle have confirmed a deal has been agreed for sporting director Dan Ashworth, with the 53-year-old set to begin work at Old Trafford immediately.
Newcastle placed Ashworth on gardening leave back in February after he revealed his desire to join Manchester United, with months of negotiations following to agree a compensation fee before Ashworth could begin his new role.
Newcastle and Man Utd released a joint statement on Monday, which read: "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."
Newcastle reportedly initially said they would force Ashworth to see out his whole gardening leave period well into 2025 if Manchester United could not pay the ÂŁ20m compensation fee they desired.
Man Utd owner Jim Ratcliffe called that idea "completely absurd".
Ashworth is one of a number of high-profile hires as part of changes behind the scenes at Old Trafford, as Ratcliffe and Ineos begin their first full season in control of football operations.
Omar Berrada joined from Manchester City as the new club chief executive, while Jason Wilcox came from Southampton to become the new academy director.
Ashworth worked as director of development for the English men's national team from 2013 to 2018 before beginning his role as technical director at Brighton.
He was appointed as Newcastle's sporting director after the takeover of the club by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF).
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Ashworth’s stellar track record with signings no doubt appealed to United, landing talents like Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister, Kaoru Mitoma and Alexander Isak at Brighton and Newcastle respectively.
Manchester United now have until August 30 to do their business in the transfer market, with reports linking the club to a range of potential signings in different positions - primarily left back, centre midfield and striker.
Bayern Munich defender Matthijs De Ligt and Bologna forward Joshua Zirkzee are two names heavily linked with United in the past number of weeks.
Signings are not the only deals being prioritised as the club look to sell to fund more spending in accordance with PSR rules.
Jadon Sancho and Casemiro are just two of the names linked with moves away from the club this summer.
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