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Dan Ashworth has left his role as Manchester United’s Sporting Director after just five months.
The Athletic reports that the move was initiated by the Man Utd heirarchy, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and chief executive Omar Berrada, with the decision to part ways with Ashworth agreed following the 3-2 defeat to Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
The 53-year-old officially took up his position at Old Trafford on July 1st after a long gardening leave with former club Newcastle United due to negotiations between the clubs over an exit fee.
Manchester United were eager to sign Ashworth, who they believed to be a world-class talent, and eventually paid a fee of around £2m-£3m to bring him to Old Trafford.
Ashworth was a prominent figure in reshaping the club following Ratcliffe’s purchase of a minority stake and has overseen major footballing decisions such as agreeing to keep Erik ten Hag as manager during the summer and spending close to £200m on players like Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, and Joshua Zirkzee, among others.
In the past Ratcliffe has been full of praise for Ashworth’s work, first with Brighton & Hove Albion then at Newcastle, having said in February: “Dan Ashworth is clearly one of the top sporting directors in the world. I have no doubt he is a very capable person.
“He is interested in Manchester United because it’s the biggest challenge at the biggest club in the world. It would be different at City because you’re maintaining a level. Here it’s a significant rebuilding job. He would be a very good addition.”
Ratcliffe came under fire from Man Utd fans for scrapping concessions for unsold tickets in Premier League matches and introducing a minimum price of £66. It triggered protests at Old Trafford before last weekend’s victory over Everton.
Speaking to ‘United We Stand’ fanzine at the time, Ratcliffe warned of ‘difficult and unpopular decisions’ moving forward.
He said: “Manchester United has become mediocre. It is supposed to be one of the best football clubs in the world.
“We have to make some difficult and unpopular decisions. If you shy away from the difficult decisions, then nothing much is going to change.”
The decision for Ashworth to leave the club was said to have been mutual.
