Newcastle United were disappointed and shocked to hear that Dan Ashworth wanted to leave for Man United, though the signs of a poor relationship were there.
Ashworth is believed to have grown frustrated with the lack of control he’s been given by Newcastle’s owners and has been intrigued by Man United’s offer where he would have far greater reign.
In a report from The Athletic, it’s claimed that Ashworth would often distance himself from Amanda Staveley, Mehrdad Ghodoussi and Jamie Reuben at St James’ Park to focus on the game at hand.
Ashworth’s didn’t have strong relationships at Newcastle
Newcastle were understood to be very disappointed in the news that Ashworth would be leaving the club as soon as possible, especially after he made it clear that he was happy at Newcastle when it was first rumoured Man United were interested.
Ashworth was central to what goes on at Newcastle, playing the role of connecting the several different departments so that there’s constant communication between them all.
While he may not have had huge impacts on the pitch in the almost two years that he spent on Tyneside, the work he did in building a recruitment team and improving the training ground will be hugely helpful in the long term.
However, it appears that signs were there that Ashworth never had a truly positive relationship with those who hired him and hearing Eddie Howe speak on the situation it doesn’t sound like the two got on either.
Newcastle swiftly moving on to new director
As soon as it was announced that Ashworth would be placed on gardening leave, Newcastle stated that the search for a new director to replace him had already begun.
Michael Edwards, formerly of Liverpool, and Richard Hughes, currently of Bournemouth, have been named as possible candidates, though neither look likely to happen at this time.
It’s so important that Newcastle make the right appointment who will ideally be here for the long term, so there will no doubt be a thorough search, but they also need one in swiftly to prepare for a big summer transfer window.
Whoever does come in will have big project to plan but it will be hugely rewarding given the resources at the club and the ambitions of the owners.
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