Ashworth mess sums up Ratcliffe’s DISASTROUS first year at Man Utd

Suraj Radia

• 8 Dec 2024 16:30 GMT
• 4 min read

Five months after being earmarked as a landmark, long-term appointment, Dan Ashworth has left his role as sporting director of Manchester United in a move that epitomises the chaos of the club’s INEOS ownership.

Ashworth formally began work at United in July after a drawn-out saga which saw months of negotiations eventually ending in a multi-million-pound payment to Newcastle for his services.

Having overseen a summer where United spent more than €200 million under a new, youth-driven transfer policy, Ashworth’s work off the pitch has not translated to positive results on it.

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However, Ashworth cannot be blamed for new signings not becoming instant successes or the fact that United have had their worst-ever start to a Premier League season, particularly with his departure revealing the extent of the turmoil behind the scenes.

Indeed it appears that, similar to his time at Newcastle, Ashworth’s shorter-than-expected tenure was filled with power struggles and a sense that the club’s sporting director was one of too many cooks not given the freedom to truly operate inside his remit.

Instead, the farcical situation is another example of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s muddy vision for United and raises doubts over whether the INEOS CEO is capable of turning fortunes around at Old Trafford.

Ashworth pays the price for bizarre Ratcliffe decisions

INEOS completed their minority takeover of United in February 2024 and Ratcliffe’s ten months at the helm have been filled with controversy, largely due to the club’s cost-cutting measures.

United made 250 staff redundant shortly after Ratcliffe’s arrival, while fans protested last week after an unprecedented rise in ticket prices and the club also cut payments to charities and ambassadors such as Sir Alex Ferguson.

Yet Ratcliffe has chosen to invest large money in a number of directors such as Omar Berrada and Sir Dave Brailsford to work alongside Ashworth, leading to some confusion over the responsibilities of each executive.

Reports after Ashworth’s exit claimed that he often felt ‘sidelined’ by key decisions and was largely made to report to Berrada and Brailsford despite being hired as a senior member of the board.

A breaking point was believed to be the hiring of Ruben Amorim, with Ashworth wanting the club to hire an English manager such as Gareth Southgate, however his desires fell on deaf ears.

The fall out came after the biggest decision of Ratcliffe’s time at United with the handling of Erik ten Hag, from giving the Dutchman a new contract in July to sacking him in November in a similar parallel to Ashworth.

Despite the turmoil under Ratcliffe’s keep, the billionaire criticised United’s former regime this week, claiming the club had been made ‘mediocre’, yet the chaos and mediocrity has only worsened during his short time with the Red Devils.

It would seem Ashworth has been made a scapegoat for Ratcliffe’s confusing and fruitless decision making and there is no reason to believe that a change of director will solve any of the issues that continue to plague England’s most successful club.