The sporting director wants to resolve his future quickly (Picture: Getty)
Dan Ashworth appears to have grown tired of the protracted negotiations between Newcastle and Manchester United over his move to Old Trafford and is set to take his old club to arbitration.
The highly regarded 53-year-old, who has previously held roles with the Football Association and Brighton, informed Newcastle of his intention to leave St James’ Park earlier this year.
Newcastle announced in February that Ashworth had been placed on gardening leave, though negotiations between the clubs over a compensation package have not progressed significantly since then.
The Magpies have been holding out for a fee of around £20million for Ashworth, though United’s new owners Ineos only want to pay a sum in the region of the £5m that Newcastle paid to Brighton just over two years ago.
With talks at an impasse, The Athletic are reporting that the matter is now on course to be decided by a third-party court of arbitration.
Ashworth is hoping the move will help facilitate his switch to Old Trafford and the case is anticipated to start in May, while it will last a number of weeks.
Given that no technical or sporting director has ever commanded a compensation fee anywhere close to the £20m Newcastle are demanding, it now seems likely Ashworth will ultimately move for significantly less than that.
Ashworth’s Newcastle exit is becoming increasingly acrimonious (Picture: Getty)
There had been suggestions that Newcastle were prepared to hold Ashworth to his gardening leave until the backend of 2025, when his contract lasts until.
But, if the arbitration goes smoothly, he could now be in place at Old Trafford in time for the start of the summer transfer window.
Speaking about United’s move for Ashworth back in February, Ineos founder Sir Jim Ratcliffe said: ‘I think Dan Ashworth is clearly one of the top sporting directors in the world, I’ve no doubt.
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‘He’s a very capable person. He’s interested in the Manchester United job because it’s probably the biggest sporting director job in the world just now, with the biggest challenge.
‘We’ve obviously had words with Newcastle. They would clearly be disappointed to lose Dan. But what I do think is completely absurd is suggesting a man who is really good at his job sits in his garden for one and a half years. That’s completely stupid.’
United have already brought in Jason Wilcox from Southampton as technical director – and he was at Old Trafford on Wednesday to watch the 4-2 win over Sheffield United – while Omar Berrada has been poached from Manchester City and begins as CEO this summer.
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