Manchester United and Newcastle United issued a joint statement on Monday, with Newcastle announcing the termination of 53-year-old Dan Ashworth's contract and the Red Devils confirming that he has officially become the club's sporting director. However, the two sides said the details of how the two clubs reached an agreement will remain confidential.
In February, Ashworth received an offer from Manchester United, but Newcastle United demanded £20 million in compensation, which Sir Jim Ratcliffe said was ridiculous, so Ashworth was put on gardening leave. The dispute looked like it would have required an independent arbitration hearing to break the deadlock, and at one point Ashworth wanted to file a case before the International Court of Arbitration, but United backed him in doing so and promised to pay the legal costs.
But now that United and Newcastle have reached an agreement, Ashworth is expected to start working immediately in United's new structure. The Sun revealed that Newcastle agreed to significantly reduce the amount of compensation in order to avoid being deducted points next season. On Sunday, ahead of the July 1 deadline, the two sides held talks and Newcastle accepted Manchester United's compensation price well below £10 million. Of course, the Red Devils also offered compensation much higher than the £3 million that Rajue had previously given. The two sides conceded and a win-win situation was reached, with United getting the people they wanted, while Newcastle were compensated and didn't have to pay Ashworth wages anymore.
Under the Premier League's PSR profitability and sustainability rules, the club can only lose £105 million in three years. Last week, Newcastle ensured that their earnings were not breaking the limit by making frantic player deals with teams such as Everton and Aston Villa. In order to avoid being deducted points, the "Magpies" planned to continue to sell people, such as Isak to Chelsea and Anthony Gordon to Liverpool, but both deals were unsuccessful, so in the end, through the cooperation with Manchester United, the financial report was improved. Both Manchester United and Newcastle officials declined to comment.
Manchester United's former director of football, John Murtaugh, has resigned in April, paving the way for Ashworth's arrival. He will have overall responsibility for the club's football performance, player sales and day-to-day operations, with technical director Jason Wilcox reporting to him.
Omar Berada will join from Manchester City in the middle of this month as chief executive, and he is Ashworth's immediate boss. Above them is Sir Dave Brailsford of INEOS Sport, who has been entrusted with a review of Manchester United's football operations.
Ashworth stepped down as Brighton's technical director in February 2022 before joining Newcastle. Prior to joining Brighton in 2019, he worked as technical director at the FA, where he revolutionised the development of the English men's and women's teams and is credited with playing a major role in England's 2017 Under-17 and Under-20 World Cup triumph. Ashworth has a reputation for player scouting and buying, as well as building an environment conducive to the team's performance.
Former Chelsea technical director Christopher Vivell will also join Manchester United on a temporary basis to help with the club's transfer efforts this summer, according to a BBC report from the BBC.
The 37-year-old will initially be a "temporary worker" to help during the current summer window and the winter window in January. Of course, if it is successful, United have not ruled out the possibility of extending their working hours, as Rajue wants to strengthen the club's football management and transfer department.
Vivier's last job as Chelsea's technical director, where he was responsible for helping new owners Todd Boehly and Bedad Egbali with their long-term planning and buying spree as he replaced legendary Blues goalkeeper Petr Cech. Vivier will be able to provide United with information on young players that he knows, as well as expertise in amortising buys, which Chelsea have known for their large number of signings since Boehly took over.
However, Vivier joined Chelsea in December 2022 and left in July 2023 after he lost a power game at the top. Following the closing of the transfer window in January 2023 and a reshuffle at Chelsea's board level, Vivier was given the task of reporting to sporting director Lawrence Stewart and Paul Winstanley, who had a higher position than those two and was unwilling to be demoted and walked away.
Earlier, Vivel had previously worked for Salzburg and Leipzig, which are part of the Red Bull Group. According to The Athletic, Rajue also likes him and has experience in running a multi-club model, because INEOS also has a stake in Ligue 1 Nice in addition to Manchester United.