Newcastle are prepared to fiercly rebuff any attempts to lure sporting director Dan Ashworth to Old Trafford following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s planned 25 per cent stake purchase of Manchester United, according to reports.
The petrochemicals billionaire is in the closing stages of negotiating buying a piece of the Manchester club from the Glazer family ownership after his planned takeover bid fell away.
The lifelong United fan is set to pay £1.4billion for the stake and assume control of the football side at Old Trafford in a bid to reverse ongoing decline at the storied club.
Board members will meet on Thursday morning to vote on Ratcliffe’s proposal but there aren’t expected to be issues that would hinder the sale to the INEOS head, who currently owns Ligue 1 side OGC Nice.
But as Ratcliffe takes control of operations at Carrington, one desired piece of recruiting may prove a little more challenging as he seeks to pull off a root-and-branch overhaul.
Newcastle’s sporting director Dan Ashworth (left) is viewed as an interesting candidate by Sir Jim Ratcliffe as he looks to complete his purchase of a 25 per cent stake of Man United
The petrochemicals billionaire is looking to take charge of football operations at the club
Ashworth was bought in by Newcastle following their 2021 takeover by Saudi Arabia’s PIF
As per the i, Ratcliffe is thought to be interested in working with Ashworth just over a year after he joined the Magpies from Premier League rivals Brighton.
Ratcliffe is believed to have been impressed by Ashworth’s recent work with the club, which has involved the recruiting of players including Harvey Barnes, Tino Livramento, and Sandro Tonali, and the lucrative sale of Allain Saint-Maximan to Al-Ahli for £25m.
But since their 2021 takeover by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund PIF, Newcastle are no longer in need of the large sums that United would be forced to pay for the raid on the Magpies backroom staff, and would do as much as possible to keep Ashworth.
For his part, Ashworth is said to be enjoying his spell at the club as they steadily build towards long-term success under their new ownership.
Mail Sport reported on Monday that another candidate on Ratcliffe’s shortlist for a new sporting director is Paul Mitchell, who currently works for Ligue 1-topping side Monaco, having previously worked at Southampton, Tottenham, and RB Leipzig.
Monaco’s sportig director Paul Mitchell is another candidate that Ratcliffe is considering
His current director of sport at INEOS Sir Dave Brailsford (centre, next to Ratcliffe) will also likely be involved in the overhaul
On Mail Sport’s podcast ‘It’s All Kicking Off!’, Mike Keegan suggested that Sir Dave Brailsford could also be involved in Ratcliffe’s overhaul of the club.
Brailsford is INEOS’ director of sport and currently works both as team principal of UCI WorldTeam Ineos Grenandiers, the group’s decorated cycling team, and in a similar capacity at Nice.
Ratcliffe’s 25 per cent bid could be the first stage of what is being viewed as a staged buyout of the club after years of turmoil under the Glazers.
Both Ratcliffe and the other prospective buyer Sheikh Jassim both tabled bids of close to £5bn in an attempt to completely takeover the Manchester club, but the offers are thought not to have met the Glazers’ valuation.
