Man Utd ‘final offer’ rejected by Newcastle as Dan Ashworth meets other Premier League club
Dan Ashworth may be gardening for a while yet after Newcastle rejected Manchester United’s ‘final offer’ for sporting director Dan Ashworth.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe has had his heart set on Ashworth ever since he took charge of football operations at Old Trafford following his purchase of a 27.7 per cent stake in the club in January.
Amid interest from United, Newcastle put Ashworth in gardening leave in February as they wait for the Red Devils to meet their valuation of the former Brighton man.
The Magpies initially demanded £20m in compenation for Ashworth – who only moved to St James’ Park in 2022 – but that figure was branded ‘absurd’ by Ratcliffe, who views the £2.6m Newcastle paid Brighton for the 53-year-old as a reasonable amount.
Ashworth in limbo
Reports claim a £3m ‘final offer’ from United has been rejected, leaving Ashworth in limbo, and it’s claimed he could seek to instigate arbitration proceedings in a bid to resolve his future, and may attempt to convince decision-makers that he was in fact sacked by Newcastle.
The United hierarchy are still hoping an agreement can be reached that will see Ashworth in place at the start of the 2024/25 Premier League season, particularly as Newcastle will have to continue to pay Ashworth’s wages unless a compromise is reached.
But the wait remains a cause of frustration for United, even more so now the club has confirmed Erik ten Hag will be staying on as head coach and they want to make progress in a bid to revamp the squad under the Dutchman.
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Ashworth met with Wolves
A report from the I claims Ashworth also held a meeting with Wolves having been placed on gardening leave, around the time United were linked with Gary O’Neil.
Ashworth is said to have met with Wolves’ sporting director Matt Hobbs at the club’s sir Jack Hayward Training Ground in March, several weeks after leaving Newcastle.
It’s claimed United were made aware of the meeting sometime after the event and insist Ashworth was not involved in any discussion over United’s possible appointment of O’Neil.
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