Manchester United are not willing to bow down to Newcastle United’s compensation demands to release Dan Ashworth, with the club ready to wait.
According to The Daily Telegraph, Manchester United are not willing to pay the fee demanded by Newcastle United for Dan Ashworth, with the Red Devils offering a considerably low fee. The Magpies are unwilling to accept anything lower than their demands for their key executive, as INEOS are eager to wait until the year’s end.
Manchester United at odds with Newcastle United over Dan Ashworth
In what has been a well-documented saga for a sporting director, Manchester United are not giving up on the pursuit of Dan Ashworth. Under the new management of INEOS, the Red Devils had targeted the Newcastle United executive, only to be given stiff resistance by the Magpies.
Newcastle United placed Ashworth on gardening leave in February as Sir Jim Ratcliffe held talks with Amanda Staveley to break the deadlock. The Magpies are demanding £15 million plus an additional £5 million in add-ons to let Ashworth leave, as the price is unheard of for a club executive.
Manchester United are only offering £2 million, which is similar to the fee Newcastle United paid Brighton & Hove Albion to sign Ashworth. The Magpies are unwilling to break the deadlock and let the Red Devils have the director. Instead, they will be ready to prolong the case unless they are paid the correct fee.
Manchester United, for their part, have no intention of being strong-armed in this chase and are willing to wait until the autumn or end of the calendar year if necessary to get their man. While some reports claimed they were close to appointing Ashworth, they are well and nowhere near bringing him to the club.
Dan Ashworth’s role and whether the wait will have an effect
Manchester United have had a change of guard over the last few months, with INEOS, led by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, taking over football operations at the club. They want Ashworth to oversee the management of their entire football operation, with the critical man tasked with putting the right processes and creating a proper scouting network in place.
While Manchester United had hoped to bring Ashworth before the summer, new technical director Jason Wilcox might have to work closely with new CEO Omar Berrada in the summer to get the club’s plans executed.
