Man Utd sporting director Dan Ashworth leaves after just five months – reports

Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth has left the club after just five months, according to reports.

Ashworth joined United on July 1, having been described by part-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe as “one of the top sporting directors in the world”.

But the Athletic reported that his transition has not gone smoothly and his departure was agreed in a meeting with chief executive Omar Berrada after Saturday’s 3-2 Premier League defeat to Nottingham Forest.

The Athletic said that Ratcliffe had played a key role in the decision.

Ashworth had, along with the rest of Ratcliffe’s Ineos hierarchy, been part of the decision to hand former manager Erik ten Hag a new contract in the summer, having been quoted in the official announcement in June.

However, Ten Hag was sacked in October, with that contract extension adding to a sizable compensation bill of £10.4million, before the appointment of Ruben Amorim, who took charge last month after United paid around £11m to get him from Sporting Lisbon.

Ashworth was also heavily involved in an expensive summer of recruitment, with the combined fees for Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee costing around £200m.

United spent around five months trying to prise Ashworth out of his previous role at Newcastle, with the 53-year-old going on gardening leave, but Ineos must now try again to fill one of the most important roles at the club.