Dan Ashworth was ‘blamed’ for Erik ten Hag staying at Manchester United over the summer and was subsequently ‘frozen out’ by those above him at Old Trafford, it has been revealed.
Man Utd fans were left stunned earlier on Sunday when it emerged that the club had opted to part ways with Ashworth. The Red Devils paid Newcastle United a reported £3million for the sporting director. They also had to wait five months for him to finish gardening leave at Newcastle before he officially started his role at Man Utd in July.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe was a big fan of Ashworth following his great work at Brighton & Hove Albion and with the FA, and the INEOS chief pushed hard to bring him in.
But things have not worked out for Ashworth at United and five months into his tenure he has been relieved of his duties.
According to the latest from BBC Sport, the Englishman was ‘frozen out’ of the decision-making picture at United as there were ‘too many cooks’.
CEO Omar Berrada, technical director Jason Wilcox, INEOS adviser Sir Dave Brailsford, head of recruitment Christopher Vivell and board member Jean-Claude Blanc are all involved in the process of taking United back to their former glory. Ratcliffe is not shy of giving direct feedback, too.
Several of these chiefs ‘blamed’ Ashworth for opting to keep Ten Hag in the summer, a decision which cost United big money to both fire the Dutchman and hire his replacement Ruben Amorim.
Ratcliffe wanted to sack Ten Hag, rather than offer him a one-year contract extension, but left the decision down to the likes of Ashworth and Berrada.
Once it became clear that Ten Hag would not make United successful this term, Ashworth’s influence started to wane.
The report adds that Arsenal and Everton are two potential options for Ashworth now that he is looking for a new club.
Arsenal need a new sporting director after losing Edu to Evangelos Marinakis’ group of clubs, which includes Nottingham Forest. Everton, meanwhile, are weighing up whether to replace their sporting director, Kevin Thelwell, with the Toffees struggling for form.
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Ashworth exit sparks media storm
There have been plenty of reports about Ashworth’s exit from United since it was announced. It has been suggested the 53-year-old was not on board with the appointment of Amorim following Ten Hag’s sacking.
Ashworth wanted to land a British coach such as Gareth Southgate or Eddie Howe, only for Berrada to overrule him.
Fabrizio Romano states that Ratcliffe ‘was not happy at all’ with Ashworth’s summer signings, as there are question marks surrounding the likes of Joshua Zirkzee, Matthijs de Ligt and Manuel Ugarte.
The BBC’s report confirms earlier speculation that Ashworth was ‘sidelined’ at United amid a ‘clash of personalities’.
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Man Utd news: Amorim criticism; Arsenal striker tussle
Amorim is not completely out of the firing line, despite Ashworth being the main subject of criticism.
Former United goalkeeper Tim Howard has questioned Amorim’s substitutions during the surprise home defeat to Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Howard has told Amorim to leave players on and ‘let them suffer’ in order to improve, rather than ‘letting them off the hook’ by replacing them.
One player United are looking at to bolster their squad is Lille ace Jonathan David, who has run his contract down ahead of a free transfer in the summer.
Reports claim United and Arsenal have both ‘held talks’ with the striker’s entourage to gauge his interest in moving to England.
Although, Inter Milan hold the strongest interest in David, which raises the possibility of him heading to Serie A instead.
How long will Amorim last as United manager?