Man Utd receive Dan Ashworth boost from Newcastle

Newcastle United appear ready to move on from Manchester United target Dan Ashworth as they begin searching for a new sporting director.

Ashworth was placed on gardening leave by Newcastle when he made it clear to his bosses at St James' Park that he wishes to be part of the INEOS revolution in Manchester.

The 52-year-old has a contract with Newcastle until 2026 that the Magpies are not obliged to release him from before his gardening leave ends in late 2025. Taking him out of their day-to-day activities indicated an acknowledgement of his desire to move on, but given how highly Ashworth is rated, reports had suggested that Newcastle have been asking as much as £20m in compensation.

The saga appeared to have stalled on that point last month, but a fresh report from the Daily Telegraph has given hope to Manchester United as it seems that their wish is to now "speed up" the process of Ashworth going. Compensation talks are said to "remain a priority" and have been conducted amicably despite the disappointment in the visionary's decision to already take up another challenge so relatively soon after arriving in the north east.

The Telegraph report adds that Newcastle are reluctant to let Ashworth start work in Manchester before the summer but could come to an agreement that allows it to happen earlier than that in the event they are paid "suitable compensation". The £20m figure quoted could be negotiable.

Newcastle are now believed to have eyes on Paul Mitchell, who himself had been linked with Manchester United after becoming known to Sir Jim Ratcliffe through his recruitment work at Monaco. He had previously made his name at Southampton and Tottenham Hotspur, building successful teams for Mauricio Pochettino at both clubs.

Others on the Newcastle shortlist are Brentford director of football Phil Giles, Tim Steidten from West Ham United and Tiago Pinto of Roma.

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