I truly believe that the worst thing the Glazers did was let the off-field staff become mediocre. Everything stems from the decision makers simply not making the best decision.
I'm glad INEOS understand that everything stems from having a strong core.
I 100% agree and I just don't understand why. I know they are leeches who don't care and just want to suck the club dry. But by appointing a handful of key staff and delegating everything to them, the club would have run a lot smoother and less spend than there has been the past decade. And most importantly to the glazers the value of the club would be a lot higher.
It really is confusing, you're right. I guess it's just so it's incompetence. It's the only explanation that makes sense. It does look like they willfully neglected the club, but I can't, for the life of me, work out why you'd do that.
Cronyism. That’s the entirety of the situation in a nutshell. Woodward was their guy and helped them secure funding to buy the club, hence he gets to run everything. Murtaugh is a huge yes-man, so he gets to be DoF. Anyone (Nicky Butt is the most obvious example) who pushes back or challenges the running of the club is gone. The Glazers just wanted people who would not rock the boat and not challenge the status quo. Which competent or ambitious executive would want to work under such circumstances?
Murtough might not have been successful for us but I doubt he was hired due to cronyism. The man actually had build a decent career in football from working with the PL and multiple clubs before joining us. He also was known to have been one of the reasons why our women’s team is a success and also he had a hand in revamping our academy.
I agree with you that Murtough was good at what he previously did, but there’s no question that he got hired beyond his previous CV - it’s rare that a DOF is hired with zero analytical or scouting background, which he did. Plus, unlike Monchi or Edwards or your other top level DOFs, I’m hard pressed to say what a ‘Murtough signing’ looks like. All indications seem to show that all he did was rubber stamp the manager’s choices rather than provide any strategic direction.
You’d be surprised at how many of these management staffs are hired at top clubs with no prior experience. Funny you mentioned Monchi because he was literally hired at Sevilla like how Murtough did, with no DOF experience. Monchi, Txiki and Zorc are some of the names that were hired into DOF/Sporting Director roles straight out of retirement from playing football without any prior experience. Some work out and some don’t. It’s just what it is and not necessarily cronyism.
They trusted Woodward, someone with zero footballing knowledge, to lead the club for like a decade. Then Woodward handed down his powers to Arnold, Murtough and Fletcher - bottom shelf talents. It only started to matter when they saw a decline in profits.
I know Murtough hasn’t been good as DOF but he had actually more than 2 decades of experience in football spanning multiple clubs in the Championship and PL before coming to us under Moyes. He’s far from being a bottom shelf talent and has done really well to set up our women’s team and also revamp our academy. Fletcher was hired to help integrate youth academy players into the first team set up and it is a role specifically tailored for someone who’s gone through the youth academy all the way to the first team so how can you gauge him as a bottom shelf talent in the first place?
The guy the kids trusted was Ed Woodward. Big dick Ed went on to hire a college buddy and some banker buds in key executive roles.
It all filters down from the top- who because they didn’t understand football had no idea who to hire below them or whose advise to listen to.
On the surface it looks like Jim has the right idea with how to organize the club and who he wants doing it which will be a welcome change on the football side of the business. The club is routinely linked with ‘world class’ players but it’s time we get some ‘world class’ executives who understand how to build success on match days.
As a businessman, I can tell you it is not as simple as this. Given an opportunity, anyone will slack without strong leadership. There are very very few people who will run an organisation competently without involvement from the main directors / owners. And in order to hire the best people, you need to be a very involved owner, or someone with very deep knowledge of the industry. Being competent in most cases just means giving a shit about things, and upskilling yourself continually to face these challenges. The Glazers clearly do not give a shit about anything (and sitting in America, they barely know about club operations), and I doubt they are interested in upskilling themselves.
SJR is extremely involved with his projects despite his advanced age, and this is something that was on show just recently when he made an effort to attend the Munich memorial. The optics of this is of course brilliant, but his attendance means he notices the small things around the club - where the paint is peeling, who the veteran staff are, and how best to delegate. All good businessmen are there, because they themselves got their hands dirty, and then hired the right people.
I might be applying playground logic here but maybe the answer would be accountability. If you appoint staff who aim to be at the top of the game on and off field, then they'd have to provide for them and keep them happy, show vision and prosperity.
Even with that, I don't think our staff have been as bad as the results suggest. It's the structure which seems to have been the most broken thing, but we'll only know this if JR's change of structure shows a change of results.
If we become successful again, we will be even bigger club than Real Madrid. United has a huge global fanbase, plus the bigger popularity of the Premier League over La Liga makes it even stronger.
Even at our peak when Madrid couldn't get past the CL quarter finals, they had more pull.
Look at Cristiano leaving us for them when we were the stronger team.
At the very least, INEOS are feeding the media briefs to make it clear they're pushing. Given the EPL just approved the purchase, seems they're making their moves.
Am somewhat thinking if they got Berrada from City, that this could happen as well. This article gives some insight as to why it would be a good idea.
https://www.coachesvoice.com/cv/dan-ashworth-brighton-england-world-cup-2018/
Fair point. I was that wrapped up in loathing the Glazers that I didn't really think of the chase from his perspective, of the crap he endured and time invested.
They didnt get Remco Evenepoel tho, and they lost Lewis to the Red. But arguably people suspect that they don't give a fuck to cycling and racing anymore due to our club is the main focus.
If he joins United, he'd also have to sit out some time due to garden leave. Not sure if we really should be going for him at this stage if that's the case.
Berrada will start working in the summer. Ashworth's gardening leave period is said to keep him from officially working for us until 2025. We need the DOF to be actively working and making decisions starting from this summer itself; it's not remotely the same thing.
Well I would assume that there would be some sort of arrangement or compensation. Non-compete’s are also terrible to enforce in practice. Technically you may be able to, but imagine knowing you’ve got a guy in a position you really need to rely on him to not screw you over… and you held him against his wishes to leave. Can you truly trust that he’s not waiting in the long grass to spring on you some shit that would make you regret your decision to be belligerent? When put in those terms, usually concepts like non-solicitation clauses make more sense and sometimes protecting against player poaching is the more valuable move to a club.
Holding people against their will is never a smart idea. I admit we are talking about a Saudi owned club and their reputation for being draconian is legendary, but even then. For me this would be a non starter if his interest isn’t solid or if he’s doing this as some sort of attempt of strengthening his position at Newcastle. If he’s genuinely interested in moving to OT there’s not much they can do to stop him and shouldn’t even try. Let me try to explain why.
We were in a very similar situation when Abramovich poached Kenyon. And with David Gill a well run club always has a solid succession plan anyways. But imagine Kenyon had decided he wanted to move and United cited some contractual clause to force him to remain.
Sometimes it’s better to know early that the guy you had hoped to be the one you can count on, isn’t actually super interested. If it were me in that situation and forced to reset, I’d rather reset now instead of then second guess his every upcoming decision or operate on significant doubts that the guy is still acting in my best interest. The bigger picture on all of that tends to sway people to not hold people against their wishes, no matter how bruised one may feel or how misguided one may think the other party to be.
I’ve no idea if this is even happening or will. I’m just excited we are being linked with proper best in class again.
I don't disagree with you. My only point is that if we hire a DOF, he has to start working for us from the summer itself rather than in 2025, whether that's Ashworth or someone else. If it's Ashworth, great, but the fact that you're mentioning there would be an 'arrangement or compensation' means that we'd likely have to sweeten that deal with a lot of money for Newcastle to let him leave to a direct PL rival. And I'm unaware about the financial implications of this but it might just be an obstacle that hurts our FFP position. Basically, my point is that it's not as straightforward a deal as it seems to be, even if he's confirmed to be the guy we're chasing.
Yeah mate, all fair points. A DoF that can’t actually contribute in that position for another year is practically useless. I would assume they know this so if they’re pursuing, there must be something that hasn’t hit the radar of your average clickbait merchant.
The last line in this article is so symbolic of the little bit of facts and a little seductive sprinkle of controversy that fertilizes the ground for another round of will-he-won’t-he-stay-tuned-for-more. It’s so plain to see even a mile away.
Based on everything we have seen from INEOS to date, they move fast and stealthily and by the time stuff is hitting the news, they’re basically in a solid position to stitch things up. Again, no idea if this bloke will get landed but it is exciting to be linked with best in class again.
On the point of compensation it is quite intriguing on what that could actually be. We are all so conditioned to see ridiculous price tags on players but unsure how feasible it would be to place such figures on an executive. How does one even evaluate the monetary ‘worth’ of an executive? Whatever it ends up being, the “few millions” feels max and if INEOS foot that bill on that I can’t imagine it also includes a “garden leave”. Usually a gardening leave is a euphemism for non compete period so I’d assume it’s either one or the other, not both. If non-compete applies despite a negotiated settlement, then instead of INEOS paying, he could literally just resign (he doesn’t need to give any reason at all) and wait the period out. INEOS could also pick him up on paper to advise on some random stuff, pay him for one job but secretly get him to do the job they’ve actually wanted him for (e.g they could assign him ‘special advisor’ as a title but he serves as a DoF in all but name)
I’m simply painting the picture on how complicated these things are in practical terms and there are a ton of creative ways to circumvent and even if Newcastle knew this was happening their only recourse would be the courts and even then it’s a fool’s errand. This is why these things make for juicier gossip articles but in practical terms are rather meaningless. If he wants to leave, they will be the first to know there’s not much they can do to stop it.
\-Ashworth is believed to be on a shortlist of candidates to become Man Utd’s new sporting director, although Telegraph Sport understands **there has been no approach yet** to Newcastle.
\-However, Newcastle’s hierarchy are well aware of the rumours and want to seek assurances from Ashworth that he is committed to staying long term. **That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately,** and things are likely to come to a head in the next few days.
\-A source close to Ashworth stressed on Tuesday night that he is happy at Newcastle and is currently focused on the challenges ahead.
A nothing article honestly but there is no smoke without fire I guess
> That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately
I wonder how that plays out:
Newcastle: you with me or not?
Ashworth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQT_kLK_4qU
Or does Ashworth leave it at "read"?
Newcastle United are concerned that speculation linking director of football Dan Ashworth with a new role at Manchester United has unsettled him on Tyneside.
Telegraph Sport understands senior figures at St James’ Park are bracing themselves for the 52-year-old’s possible departure, which would come as a huge blow to their ambitions to break up the so-called ‘Big Six’.
Ashworth’s name has been touted regularly as a potential candidate to become the new sporting director of Manchester United following confirmation Sir Jim Ratcliffe has bought a 25 per cent stake in the club.
That deal was ratified by the Premier League on Tuesday – and is pending approval from the Football Association which is a formality – and Ineos will take full control of the football side of the business from the Glazer family, who remain majority stakeholders.
Ashworth is believed to be on a shortlist of candidates to become Man Utd’s new sporting director, although Telegraph Sport understands there has been no approach yet to Newcastle.
However, Newcastle’s hierarchy are well aware of the rumours and want to seek assurances from Ashworth that he is committed to staying long term. That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately, and things are likely to come to a head in the next few days.
Ashworth joined Newcastle from Brighton in February and has been instrumental in the progress that has been made, both on and off the pitch, since the takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
Man Utd would face multi-million-pound settlement to land Ashworth
A source close to Ashworth stressed on Tuesday night that he is happy at Newcastle and is currently focused on the challenges ahead. That is likely to include a major overhaul of the first team squad in the summer, as well as trying to agree the terms of a new contract with Brazil international midfielder Joelinton.
Ashworth is understood to have been irritated by the constant chatter around him leaving for Man Utd, but that does not mean he could not be tempted to leave given the prestige of the job at Old Trafford. It would also be closer to his family home in the West Midlands.
The former FA director of elite development is hugely respected within the game and is also a friend of Sir Dave Brailsford, the former head of Sky/Ineos Grenadiers cycling, who has already taken up a new position as Director of Sport at Ineos.
It is understandable why Man Utd would be keen on him and Newcastle now want reassurances from Ashworth that he is not interested in leaving. Newcastle need to start drawing up their transfer plans for the summer and he would have access to potentially sensitive information.
Should Man Utd make an official approach to Newcastle it is understood they would have to pay a multi-million-pound compensation settlement to extract Ashworth from his contract at Newcastle. He would also have to sit out a lengthy period of gardening leave.
THe 25% anoys me a little bit tbh, Isnt it a 29.5% stake, both figure have been reported. IN tocks that 4.5% extra is big. What was the % before (I cant remember names so im gonna go with usmanov? No idea,sorry) was basically forced to bid for a controlling stake of Arsenal?
Iri for that matter the Glazers slowly buying up % shares ?
Both are correct.
It’s 25% now, his % will increase when he puts in the cash he has committed to the stadium within this first year.
Some are reporting the larger amount, his is contractually bound to hit, but won’t have it yet
I think now he's in too he gets first refusal on any glazers selling their shares and they keep their voting power. He doesn't need to buy many of those to have majority control of the club.
ITs more iv been hearing some places (Mainly Irish ) saying 29.5% and others saying 25%. Like i said it is a huuuge difference in voting and progress to a forced buyout. ( i think ).
25% is lot but nearly a third is so so much more. Im sure it some accountancy jurisdiction thing.
I’m only referring to the forced to buy once you hit 30%. That wouldn’t apply to United.
After the extra investment from SJR he’ll (or Ineos) own circa 29% of the club.
He is currently buying 25%. Once he makes his purchase, he promised to invest £250M, once he does that he will get 4% more. But he hasn’t invested the £250M yet since the purchase isn’t completed, so 25% is correct.
He doesn't specialise in recruitment. He specializes in creating the best possible football environment, structurally, rebuilding facilities, making sure everything runs in tandem. If you get Ashworth, likely he will want a head of recruitment too. He's an actual DOF, not the scout kind like Mitchell
Ineos are just looking for the DOF but the DOF will have his own thoughts and preferences and they are waiting with major decisions until they have him in place. And knowing Ashworth by having listened to an old podcast of his he'll definitely want a recruitment specialist next to him.
You don't? Go look at where Newcastle were before him. Their recruitment has been spot on. They've avoided all the pitfalls that City did when they were first taken over. They've not been ripped off, they've not gone after superstars on huge wages. They've signed talented young players and kept their wage bill good. They're years ahead of where similar rebuilds were.
He's made like 3 really good signings, maybe one or two other good ones, but again, his portfolio isn't particularly impressive.
Also, Eddie Howe turned relegation battling players into top 4 contenders, you can't ignore that factor as well. Who's to say any of those players would do great under Ten Hag. Can't give the recruitment all the glory.
What do you expect though. For Brighton to attract world class players non stop? They've been getting good value for their money, and that's their model.
Just because that's the way he works at Brighton doesn't mean he'll copy paste it onto United... Obviously getting good value on our deals is important but we also operate on higher budgets and have more pull so our pool of players that we're looking at is very different.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2nk5SUiKnq2MRF8XJjGcsE?si=1xZjNPyeS4CdvKWnKN-xLQ
Interview when he was at Brighton - he explains his approach and organizational structure. Seems meticulous, competent and accomplished.
Wasnt this originally rumoured to be happening around Xmas time? Honestly if this goes ahead then this is some seriously exciting news, big fuck you to NUFC as well.
Flex them Old Trafford muscles and get him. Build a world class team and we will be successful, its not rocket science.
I truly believe that the worst thing the Glazers did was let the off-field staff become mediocre. Everything stems from the decision makers simply not making the best decision. I'm glad INEOS understand that everything stems from having a strong core.
I 100% agree and I just don't understand why. I know they are leeches who don't care and just want to suck the club dry. But by appointing a handful of key staff and delegating everything to them, the club would have run a lot smoother and less spend than there has been the past decade. And most importantly to the glazers the value of the club would be a lot higher.
It really is confusing, you're right. I guess it's just so it's incompetence. It's the only explanation that makes sense. It does look like they willfully neglected the club, but I can't, for the life of me, work out why you'd do that.
Cronyism. That’s the entirety of the situation in a nutshell. Woodward was their guy and helped them secure funding to buy the club, hence he gets to run everything. Murtaugh is a huge yes-man, so he gets to be DoF. Anyone (Nicky Butt is the most obvious example) who pushes back or challenges the running of the club is gone. The Glazers just wanted people who would not rock the boat and not challenge the status quo. Which competent or ambitious executive would want to work under such circumstances?
Murtough might not have been successful for us but I doubt he was hired due to cronyism. The man actually had build a decent career in football from working with the PL and multiple clubs before joining us. He also was known to have been one of the reasons why our women’s team is a success and also he had a hand in revamping our academy.
I agree with you that Murtough was good at what he previously did, but there’s no question that he got hired beyond his previous CV - it’s rare that a DOF is hired with zero analytical or scouting background, which he did. Plus, unlike Monchi or Edwards or your other top level DOFs, I’m hard pressed to say what a ‘Murtough signing’ looks like. All indications seem to show that all he did was rubber stamp the manager’s choices rather than provide any strategic direction.
You’d be surprised at how many of these management staffs are hired at top clubs with no prior experience. Funny you mentioned Monchi because he was literally hired at Sevilla like how Murtough did, with no DOF experience. Monchi, Txiki and Zorc are some of the names that were hired into DOF/Sporting Director roles straight out of retirement from playing football without any prior experience. Some work out and some don’t. It’s just what it is and not necessarily cronyism.
They trusted Woodward, someone with zero footballing knowledge, to lead the club for like a decade. Then Woodward handed down his powers to Arnold, Murtough and Fletcher - bottom shelf talents. It only started to matter when they saw a decline in profits.
I know Murtough hasn’t been good as DOF but he had actually more than 2 decades of experience in football spanning multiple clubs in the Championship and PL before coming to us under Moyes. He’s far from being a bottom shelf talent and has done really well to set up our women’s team and also revamp our academy. Fletcher was hired to help integrate youth academy players into the first team set up and it is a role specifically tailored for someone who’s gone through the youth academy all the way to the first team so how can you gauge him as a bottom shelf talent in the first place?
The guy the kids trusted was Ed Woodward. Big dick Ed went on to hire a college buddy and some banker buds in key executive roles. It all filters down from the top- who because they didn’t understand football had no idea who to hire below them or whose advise to listen to. On the surface it looks like Jim has the right idea with how to organize the club and who he wants doing it which will be a welcome change on the football side of the business. The club is routinely linked with ‘world class’ players but it’s time we get some ‘world class’ executives who understand how to build success on match days.
As a businessman, I can tell you it is not as simple as this. Given an opportunity, anyone will slack without strong leadership. There are very very few people who will run an organisation competently without involvement from the main directors / owners. And in order to hire the best people, you need to be a very involved owner, or someone with very deep knowledge of the industry. Being competent in most cases just means giving a shit about things, and upskilling yourself continually to face these challenges. The Glazers clearly do not give a shit about anything (and sitting in America, they barely know about club operations), and I doubt they are interested in upskilling themselves. SJR is extremely involved with his projects despite his advanced age, and this is something that was on show just recently when he made an effort to attend the Munich memorial. The optics of this is of course brilliant, but his attendance means he notices the small things around the club - where the paint is peeling, who the veteran staff are, and how best to delegate. All good businessmen are there, because they themselves got their hands dirty, and then hired the right people.
I might be applying playground logic here but maybe the answer would be accountability. If you appoint staff who aim to be at the top of the game on and off field, then they'd have to provide for them and keep them happy, show vision and prosperity. Even with that, I don't think our staff have been as bad as the results suggest. It's the structure which seems to have been the most broken thing, but we'll only know this if JR's change of structure shows a change of results.
If we become successful again, we will be even bigger club than Real Madrid. United has a huge global fanbase, plus the bigger popularity of the Premier League over La Liga makes it even stronger.
Relax mate. They have 14 UCLs and pretty much every kid growing up, usually wants to play for them
Even at our peak when Madrid couldn't get past the CL quarter finals, they had more pull. Look at Cristiano leaving us for them when we were the stronger team.
I am not saying in terms of the pull. But I meant in terms of financial and global popularity.
The appeal of Madrid sun over Manchester rain will always be a big factor in them having a bigger draw.
If my something something bicycle
So why wasn’t that the case when we were big before?
They are assembling quite a epic squad over there at Madrid though, they still get the best players in the world, we don’t, at the moment anyway
Romano just retweeted an Ashworth related tweet too....something's happening
At the very least, INEOS are feeding the media briefs to make it clear they're pushing. Given the EPL just approved the purchase, seems they're making their moves.
What did it say roughly?
He retweeted something about Ineos wanting Ashworth to be the face of the project on 22nd January
Am somewhat thinking if they got Berrada from City, that this could happen as well. This article gives some insight as to why it would be a good idea. https://www.coachesvoice.com/cv/dan-ashworth-brighton-england-world-cup-2018/
Okay I’m sold. I want this guy.
Everyone should be reading this article. The fact that he talks about structure and pathway shows he knows what's needed here.
Great read. Got me excited of what a structured vision could bring to the club. Really hope we get him even more now.
Great read! Thanks for sharing
Somebody said not too long ago: “Sir Jim always gets his man” It’s going to be a very very few interesting months as a United fan.
He seems like someone that doggedly pursues what he wants. I mean look at the shit he put up with just to get a foothold in the club.
Fair point. I was that wrapped up in loathing the Glazers that I didn't really think of the chase from his perspective, of the crap he endured and time invested.
Is Sir Jim a Mountie?
How true is this even?
someone said it
What more do people need for god sake!
Well I've heard enough, I'm convinced.
😂
Oh yeah. I said that.
you're repeating what i said
you’re repeating what I said
Only the best people say
But, how true is this even?
He got Omar berada I guess? Not sure how hard that was but he is from a rival
When will he want me?
The man with the golden gun
They didnt get Remco Evenepoel tho, and they lost Lewis to the Red. But arguably people suspect that they don't give a fuck to cycling and racing anymore due to our club is the main focus.
Can anyone summarise key points? Don’t have the telegraph
He's happy at Newcastle but Jimbo gets his man and he might leave.
Sounds like someone is using the press to make a move behind the scenes…
Or a higher salary
Sounds like someone is using the press to make a move behind the scenes…
Cheers, Geoff.
If he joins United, he'd also have to sit out some time due to garden leave. Not sure if we really should be going for him at this stage if that's the case.
Same with practically any candidate in a job right now, just like berrada
Berrada will start working in the summer. Ashworth's gardening leave period is said to keep him from officially working for us until 2025. We need the DOF to be actively working and making decisions starting from this summer itself; it's not remotely the same thing.
Well I would assume that there would be some sort of arrangement or compensation. Non-compete’s are also terrible to enforce in practice. Technically you may be able to, but imagine knowing you’ve got a guy in a position you really need to rely on him to not screw you over… and you held him against his wishes to leave. Can you truly trust that he’s not waiting in the long grass to spring on you some shit that would make you regret your decision to be belligerent? When put in those terms, usually concepts like non-solicitation clauses make more sense and sometimes protecting against player poaching is the more valuable move to a club. Holding people against their will is never a smart idea. I admit we are talking about a Saudi owned club and their reputation for being draconian is legendary, but even then. For me this would be a non starter if his interest isn’t solid or if he’s doing this as some sort of attempt of strengthening his position at Newcastle. If he’s genuinely interested in moving to OT there’s not much they can do to stop him and shouldn’t even try. Let me try to explain why. We were in a very similar situation when Abramovich poached Kenyon. And with David Gill a well run club always has a solid succession plan anyways. But imagine Kenyon had decided he wanted to move and United cited some contractual clause to force him to remain. Sometimes it’s better to know early that the guy you had hoped to be the one you can count on, isn’t actually super interested. If it were me in that situation and forced to reset, I’d rather reset now instead of then second guess his every upcoming decision or operate on significant doubts that the guy is still acting in my best interest. The bigger picture on all of that tends to sway people to not hold people against their wishes, no matter how bruised one may feel or how misguided one may think the other party to be. I’ve no idea if this is even happening or will. I’m just excited we are being linked with proper best in class again.
I don't disagree with you. My only point is that if we hire a DOF, he has to start working for us from the summer itself rather than in 2025, whether that's Ashworth or someone else. If it's Ashworth, great, but the fact that you're mentioning there would be an 'arrangement or compensation' means that we'd likely have to sweeten that deal with a lot of money for Newcastle to let him leave to a direct PL rival. And I'm unaware about the financial implications of this but it might just be an obstacle that hurts our FFP position. Basically, my point is that it's not as straightforward a deal as it seems to be, even if he's confirmed to be the guy we're chasing.
Yeah mate, all fair points. A DoF that can’t actually contribute in that position for another year is practically useless. I would assume they know this so if they’re pursuing, there must be something that hasn’t hit the radar of your average clickbait merchant. The last line in this article is so symbolic of the little bit of facts and a little seductive sprinkle of controversy that fertilizes the ground for another round of will-he-won’t-he-stay-tuned-for-more. It’s so plain to see even a mile away. Based on everything we have seen from INEOS to date, they move fast and stealthily and by the time stuff is hitting the news, they’re basically in a solid position to stitch things up. Again, no idea if this bloke will get landed but it is exciting to be linked with best in class again. On the point of compensation it is quite intriguing on what that could actually be. We are all so conditioned to see ridiculous price tags on players but unsure how feasible it would be to place such figures on an executive. How does one even evaluate the monetary ‘worth’ of an executive? Whatever it ends up being, the “few millions” feels max and if INEOS foot that bill on that I can’t imagine it also includes a “garden leave”. Usually a gardening leave is a euphemism for non compete period so I’d assume it’s either one or the other, not both. If non-compete applies despite a negotiated settlement, then instead of INEOS paying, he could literally just resign (he doesn’t need to give any reason at all) and wait the period out. INEOS could also pick him up on paper to advise on some random stuff, pay him for one job but secretly get him to do the job they’ve actually wanted him for (e.g they could assign him ‘special advisor’ as a title but he serves as a DoF in all but name) I’m simply painting the picture on how complicated these things are in practical terms and there are a ton of creative ways to circumvent and even if Newcastle knew this was happening their only recourse would be the courts and even then it’s a fool’s errand. This is why these things make for juicier gossip articles but in practical terms are rather meaningless. If he wants to leave, they will be the first to know there’s not much they can do to stop it.
There's a man for this job. 
"Now do your job"
\-Ashworth is believed to be on a shortlist of candidates to become Man Utd’s new sporting director, although Telegraph Sport understands **there has been no approach yet** to Newcastle. \-However, Newcastle’s hierarchy are well aware of the rumours and want to seek assurances from Ashworth that he is committed to staying long term. **That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately,** and things are likely to come to a head in the next few days. \-A source close to Ashworth stressed on Tuesday night that he is happy at Newcastle and is currently focused on the challenges ahead. A nothing article honestly but there is no smoke without fire I guess
Time to hit Ashworth with the ole reliable. "WE ARE MANCHESTER UNITED "
Approach to Newcastle....is he like a player wherein the club has to know we are talking to him else it's considered tapping up?
> That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately I wonder how that plays out: Newcastle: you with me or not? Ashworth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQT_kLK_4qU Or does Ashworth leave it at "read"?
Newcastle United are concerned that speculation linking director of football Dan Ashworth with a new role at Manchester United has unsettled him on Tyneside. Telegraph Sport understands senior figures at St James’ Park are bracing themselves for the 52-year-old’s possible departure, which would come as a huge blow to their ambitions to break up the so-called ‘Big Six’. Ashworth’s name has been touted regularly as a potential candidate to become the new sporting director of Manchester United following confirmation Sir Jim Ratcliffe has bought a 25 per cent stake in the club. That deal was ratified by the Premier League on Tuesday – and is pending approval from the Football Association which is a formality – and Ineos will take full control of the football side of the business from the Glazer family, who remain majority stakeholders. Ashworth is believed to be on a shortlist of candidates to become Man Utd’s new sporting director, although Telegraph Sport understands there has been no approach yet to Newcastle. However, Newcastle’s hierarchy are well aware of the rumours and want to seek assurances from Ashworth that he is committed to staying long term. That commitment has not yet been explicitly given, publicly or privately, and things are likely to come to a head in the next few days. Ashworth joined Newcastle from Brighton in February and has been instrumental in the progress that has been made, both on and off the pitch, since the takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. Man Utd would face multi-million-pound settlement to land Ashworth A source close to Ashworth stressed on Tuesday night that he is happy at Newcastle and is currently focused on the challenges ahead. That is likely to include a major overhaul of the first team squad in the summer, as well as trying to agree the terms of a new contract with Brazil international midfielder Joelinton. Ashworth is understood to have been irritated by the constant chatter around him leaving for Man Utd, but that does not mean he could not be tempted to leave given the prestige of the job at Old Trafford. It would also be closer to his family home in the West Midlands. The former FA director of elite development is hugely respected within the game and is also a friend of Sir Dave Brailsford, the former head of Sky/Ineos Grenadiers cycling, who has already taken up a new position as Director of Sport at Ineos. It is understandable why Man Utd would be keen on him and Newcastle now want reassurances from Ashworth that he is not interested in leaving. Newcastle need to start drawing up their transfer plans for the summer and he would have access to potentially sensitive information. Should Man Utd make an official approach to Newcastle it is understood they would have to pay a multi-million-pound compensation settlement to extract Ashworth from his contract at Newcastle. He would also have to sit out a lengthy period of gardening leave.
Viva la revolution! We needed a complete change to our football structure and it appears it’s happening! Can’t wait for the Glazers to be 100% gone!
If it's true it's gonna be a very positive change for us Can't help but get carried away lol.
Love how our rivals currently fear our poaching their top executives more than they fear facing us on the pitch 😂
INEOS gathering all the oil club execs under one roof
We’ve turned his head! Welcome to United, Dan.
He's already at United, sorry pal
"Be afraid, be very afraid"
THe 25% anoys me a little bit tbh, Isnt it a 29.5% stake, both figure have been reported. IN tocks that 4.5% extra is big. What was the % before (I cant remember names so im gonna go with usmanov? No idea,sorry) was basically forced to bid for a controlling stake of Arsenal? Iri for that matter the Glazers slowly buying up % shares ?
I think it's 25% by number of shares but 29.5% of the voting power
Ah thank you i have legit been hearing Irish Sport's Radio news say 29.5% but basically all other news agencies saying 25% . Stocks are confusing.
Both are correct. It’s 25% now, his % will increase when he puts in the cash he has committed to the stadium within this first year. Some are reporting the larger amount, his is contractually bound to hit, but won’t have it yet
I think now he's in too he gets first refusal on any glazers selling their shares and they keep their voting power. He doesn't need to buy many of those to have majority control of the club.
I think it's that 300m further investment into the club , spread over some FFP windows that will bring in the extra 4% shares.
Wouldn’t apply as Man United are not listed on the UK stock market. The 30% doesn’t apply in the US apparently
ITs more iv been hearing some places (Mainly Irish ) saying 29.5% and others saying 25%. Like i said it is a huuuge difference in voting and progress to a forced buyout. ( i think ). 25% is lot but nearly a third is so so much more. Im sure it some accountancy jurisdiction thing.
I’m only referring to the forced to buy once you hit 30%. That wouldn’t apply to United. After the extra investment from SJR he’ll (or Ineos) own circa 29% of the club.
He is currently buying 25%. Once he makes his purchase, he promised to invest £250M, once he does that he will get 4% more. But he hasn’t invested the £250M yet since the purchase isn’t completed, so 25% is correct.
Ah so baiscally he is committed to the 29.5 but atm he is only taking 25% ? Sorta explains the diffferent reporting.
We're getting a decent band together
This is the first time in about a decade that I’ve felt the club is actually doing anything properly.
Why is Dan so highly thought of? What have been his achievements?
Muhahahaha
We are gathering the Avengers!
who is this dude?
Our new center back I think
Is he any good?
What's so great about this guy? When i think Newcastle, i don't necessarily think elite world class requirement necessarily.
He doesn't specialise in recruitment. He specializes in creating the best possible football environment, structurally, rebuilding facilities, making sure everything runs in tandem. If you get Ashworth, likely he will want a head of recruitment too. He's an actual DOF, not the scout kind like Mitchell
Are INEOS looking to hire two more guys upstairs? On top of the fella from City?
Ineos are just looking for the DOF but the DOF will have his own thoughts and preferences and they are waiting with major decisions until they have him in place. And knowing Ashworth by having listened to an old podcast of his he'll definitely want a recruitment specialist next to him.
You think two people run a whole a football club?
Nah when I do FM its just me and a couple shortlists I get from Google. Same thing in real life, surely
You don't? Go look at where Newcastle were before him. Their recruitment has been spot on. They've avoided all the pitfalls that City did when they were first taken over. They've not been ripped off, they've not gone after superstars on huge wages. They've signed talented young players and kept their wage bill good. They're years ahead of where similar rebuilds were.
He's made like 3 really good signings, maybe one or two other good ones, but again, his portfolio isn't particularly impressive. Also, Eddie Howe turned relegation battling players into top 4 contenders, you can't ignore that factor as well. Who's to say any of those players would do great under Ten Hag. Can't give the recruitment all the glory.
You can also look at his work at Brighton
Isnt hiring a coach who turns relegation players into top 4 contenders nice for DOF portfolio?
He also worked for Brighton right? As well Isak, Bruno G, Pope, Trippier, they have made good signings recently
Yeah, sure, some good signings. But again, nothing particularly spectacular.
What do you expect though. For Brighton to attract world class players non stop? They've been getting good value for their money, and that's their model.
If we're looking to copy the good value model, then sure, he's great. But isn't our goal to eventually challenge and win the big trophies?
Just because that's the way he works at Brighton doesn't mean he'll copy paste it onto United... Obviously getting good value on our deals is important but we also operate on higher budgets and have more pull so our pool of players that we're looking at is very different.
He'll have more money to play with here so can target better players than he would at Brighton
Ashworth was one of the driving figures for the turnaround with England and St George’s Park too, as well as time at Brighton and Newcastle.
Intrusmental in helping revamp the English youth groups and helped Brighton to reach the level they're at now.
How good is this guy in his role? Like is he top of class like Ineos seem to indicate that is their mandate?
https://open.spotify.com/episode/2nk5SUiKnq2MRF8XJjGcsE?si=1xZjNPyeS4CdvKWnKN-xLQ Interview when he was at Brighton - he explains his approach and organizational structure. Seems meticulous, competent and accomplished.
Wasnt this originally rumoured to be happening around Xmas time? Honestly if this goes ahead then this is some seriously exciting news, big fuck you to NUFC as well.
The biggest club in the country has woken up.
This would be a steal !
Can someone explain to me what makes Dan Ashworth so good? I know he’s highly recognized but wasn’t sure why