Dan Ashworth was not in favor of Ruben Amorim's appointment as Manchester United's new head coach.
Separate insiders claim that Ashworth, who took over as sporting director on July 1, was not part of the process to select Amorim and instead suggested Gareth Southgate, his former colleague at the Football Association from 2013-18.
Amorim was already a candidate for United before Ashworth's arrival. CEO Omar Berrada led the move for Amorim, persuading him to join United mid-season despite interest from Manchester City as a potential successor to Pep Guardiola.
When asked for a response, United referred back to their statement at the time of Amorim's appointment, which they said was a unanimous decision by the club's senior leadership. According to the Manchester Evening News, a source revealed that things "had not been rosy" with Ashworth for several weeks.
His departure was confirmed exactly two weeks after Amorim's first match in charge at Ipswich Town. The announcement of Amorim's impending arrival on November 1 did not include any quotes from Ashworth, nor did the press release announcing Erik ten Hag's departure in October.
However, Ashworth was quoted in the statements confirming the summer signings of Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Manuel Ugarte.
Ashworth, aged 53, made a sudden exit from his role as United's first-ever sporting director on Saturday night after just five months and six days. The club had previously paid a sum between £2 million and £3 million to Newcastle United for Ashworth’s services—his background includes tenures at Brighton and West Brom.
Ruben Amorim has quickly become the fan favorite at United, but his arrival hasn't sparked the transformation required, with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe branding the team "mediocre".
Since taking over, Amorim has overseen two losses in four Premier League games, leading to a slide down to 13th in the standings following back-to-back losses. Gareth Southgate, in a LinkedIn update, hinted that he might have hung up his managerial boots for good.
Liverpool.com says: The circus at Manchester United continues. The fact Dan Ashworth lasted as long in the role as he was on gardening leave sums it all up. But perhaps the decision makes sense if he exhibited the kind of thinking that would have seen Gareth Southgate in charge.