Dan Ashworth at a press conference.
Dan Ashworth has left a parting gift. (Image: UEFA via Getty Images)
Manchester United have parted ways with sporting director Dan Ashworth after just five months in the role, but the 53-year-old did secure the Reds a future £25million windfall during his short spell at Old Trafford.
As reported, Ashworth - who only joined the club on July 1 - has left his position after crunch talks at Old Trafford following Saturday evening's 3-2 defeat to Nottingham Forest.
The report claims that CEO Omar Berrada was part of the talks over the weekend which led to Ashworth's shock exit being "agreed" at Old Trafford. It's claimed that United "instigated the separation" before a mutual agreement to terminate the former Brighton & Hove Albion and Newcastle United transfer chief's contract was put together.
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After his appointment, Ashworth, who had previously worked with the Football Association (FA), was placed in charge of football performance, operations and recruitment at United.
And in his first summer at Old Trafford, he was involved in a lavish spending spree as United signed Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee - for a total cost of around £200million.
But it is one of Ashworth's final acts in the transfer market which could be seen as a silver lining from his stint at Old Trafford, as he was able to strike a deal with Premier League rivals Chelsea to offload Jadon Sancho.
The 24-year-old England international, who had joined United for £72.9million in the summer of 2021, had fallen out of favour at Old Trafford under Erik ten Hag and spent the second half of the 2023/24 season on loan at former club Borussia Dortmund.
Ashworth, though, was able to negotiate a deal with Chelsea late on deadline day to take Sancho on another loan. Most impressively, though, was United's ability to convince the Londoners to agree to an obligation to buy Sancho in the deal - which was formalised close to the 11pm cut-off.
It means that Sancho's transfer to Stamford Bridge will be made permanent in July 2025, with United set to recoup £25million for the England forward, who failed to impress in three years at Old Trafford.