Manchester United have officially terminated the contract of sporting director Dan Ashworth on Sunday.
The club confirmed the out-of-the-blue news with a statement published on the club’s official website.
“Dan Ashworth will be leaving his role as Sporting Director of Manchester United by mutual agreement,” reads the official note.
“We would like to thank Dan for his work and support during a transitional period for the club and wish him well for the future.
The 53-year-old was only appointed in July when the Red Devils earmarked him as the ideal profile to build a squad capable of bringing the club back to its former glory.
However, the desired results remain missing, and the managerial switch (replacing Erik ten Hag with Ruben Amorim ) has yet to pay dividends, as illustrated by this week’s back-to-back defeats.
Man United rescind the contract of Dan Ashworth
Hence, the hierarchy was quick to drop the ball on Ashworth, terminating his contract by mutual consent, or at least this is how the official statement paints it.
For his part, Manchester Evening News journalist Samuel Luckhurst depicts a much more chaotic picture, suggesting Ashworth may have been escorted out of Old Trafford following the team’s 2-3 defeat at the hands of Nottingham Forest.
“Dan Ashworth followed Collette Roche through the press conference room twenty minutes after full-time on Saturday.” revealed Luckhurst.
“Ms Roche, the chief operating officer, offered a polite “hello” to a colleague sitting in the front row. The grim-faced Ashworth avoided eye contact and did not break his stride.
In retrospect, perhaps Ashworth was frogmarched out. He was still clad in his Paul Smith club suit and a security official walked behind him. He was not even permitted an exit through the directors’ entrance or Stretford End tunnel.”
Whether the escort theory is true or not, it remains an unceremonious exit for the former Newcastle United and Brighton manager who’s time at Carrington has unraveled much sooner than most had expected.
