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Dan Ashworth has left his position as sporting director of Manchester United just five months after joining from Newcastle United.
Ashworth joined Man United at the start of July following an extended period of negotiations with Newcastle to release him from his contract. Ashworth was placed on gardening leave on Tyneside from February to June and Man United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe hit out at Newcastle for being ‘very awkward’ and ‘a bit silly’ in the negotiation process.
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Five months on and Ashworth’s departure has already been confirmed by Manchester United. Following the 3-2 defeat against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, the club confirmed the departure in a statement.
It read: “Dan Ashworth will be leaving his role as sporting director of Manchester United by mutual agreement. We would like to thank Dan for his work and support during a transitional period for the club and wish him well for the future.”
Although the official statement claimed the departure was mutual, The Athletic reported that sources inside Manchester United suggested the club ‘instigated the separation’.
Ashworth’s departure comes six weeks after manager Erik ten Hag was dismissed from his role at Old Trafford. Manchester United have had a difficult start to the 2024-25 season after significant investment in the summer with signings such as Joshua Zirkzee, Leny Yoro, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Manuel Ugarte for around £200million in total.
The 53-year-old spent two years at Newcastle as sporting director, overseeing the club’s qualification for the Champions League in his first full season working with head coach Eddie Howe. He had previously spent time at Brighton & Hove Albion in a similar role.
And just days before Ashworth’s departure from Man United, Howe praised his former colleague in an interview with Simon Jordan.
“He is a really smart guy who is very well organised,” he said on the Up Front podcast. “Dan’s biggest strength is he looks at things from top to bottom.
“He is a good problem-solver and will work his way through things from a structural viewpoint and then rebuild them. I got on really well with him, got on well with him and I was sad to see him go. But I also understood his viewpoint and wish him well.”
Newcastle appointed Paul Mitchell in the summer as Ashworth’s replacement. Manchester United had previously held talks with Mitchell about a position at Old Trafford.
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