Sporting director Ashworth’s sudden departure came just months after his arrival from Newcastle
Dan Ashworth left Manchester United this week
Dan Ashworth left Manchester United this week (PA)
Ruben Amorim admits sporting director Dan Ashworth’s shock exit is “not the best situation” but the Manchester United head coach believes the club’s vision remains clear and unaffected.
Sunday morning brought the stunning announcement that the 53-year-old was leaving Old Trafford just 159 days after an agreement was finally struck to bring him from Newcastle.
Ashworth’s departure was met by surprise from afar as well as inside United, where the PA news agency understands there was shock from many staff despite a sense that things had not been going smoothly within the hierarchy.
Amorim faced the media for the first time since the sporting director’s abrupt exit ahead of Thursday’s Europa League group game at Viktoria Plzen, where the first questions focused on that development.
“The first thing I want to say is that since the first day I felt great support from the ownership,” the United head coach said.
“From Omar (Berrada, chief executive), from Dan also, from Jason (Wilcox, technical director). Dan was part of that, and I really, really, really felt support from Dan also. But this is football and sometimes these things happens. It happens with players, with coaches.
“I know that it’s not the best situation but the important thing is we continue in our way. The path is really clear for everybody and I think this can happen in football.”
Asked if he is concerned that United were more unstable than when he first arrived a month ago, Amorim said: “I don’t think so.
“Like I said, I’ve felt since day one the support from everybody, so one person leaving don’t change nothing.
“Of course, it’s a bad situation, like I said, because we are talking about a human being, a professional, that supports us as a team.
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim was surprised by Dan Ashworth’s exit
Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim was surprised by Dan Ashworth’s exit (PA Wire)
“But I think the most important thing is that your vision is really clear and that vision don’t change if only one person leaves.”
Ashworth’s departure continues Amorim’s crash course into life at United, who are looking to bounce back from back-to-back defeats against Arsenal and Nottingham Forest.
Those losses have highlighted the job at hand and led to heightened talk about potential improvements heading into the January transfer window.
Asked if he needs to sell to buy, Amorim said: “No, I’m really focused on to see my players and to understand my players. I think that is one of the problems of the clubs.
“We have to focus on what we have. We have to focus on the academy and also to have a clear profile when you get the players.
Ruben Amorim believes Manchester United should focus on the talent at their disposal
Ruben Amorim believes Manchester United should focus on the talent at their disposal (PA Wire)
“So, it’s a lot of details you have to manage. You can see at set-pieces, sometimes you look at our team and we are a small team compared to others.
“Every detail counts and we have to be very clear first in the profiles, arrange all the process and then go to that phase of buying and selling players.
“But we have, like Ty (Malacia), international players, good players and we need time to teach them our ideas and then we will see because this is a massive club.
“If we don’t win, the coach goes, the player goes, so you have to know that.
“We have to improve as a team, we have to arrange a lot of things in our club before thinking just in buying or selling players.
“There’s a lot to do, so let’s focus on improving our players, improving our academy and then see.”
United’s pursuit of progress continues in the Czech Republic, where United are looking to secure a first away win under Amorim – and the club’s first European victory on the road since March 2023.
The Red Devils are level on nine points with Viktoria in the new-look Europa League standings and Amorim is desperate to edge closer to a top-eight finish that would avoid February’s play-offs.
“It’s really, really important for us as a club, as a team in this moment if you pass to the next (knockout) stage without having to go to a play-off, you take two games from our schedule,” Amorim said. “It’s massive.
“For some teams it is nothing. For us it is really, really, really important.
“But we are facing a team that maybe a lot of people in England don’t know the name of, but they are unbeaten at home in Europe.”
PA