Manchester United were able to strike a cut-price deal to secure the services of Dan Ashworth after Newcastle’s precarious financial position forced the Tyneside club to “slash…their demands for £20 million in compensation”.
INEOS, who gained full control over the sporting operation at Old Trafford following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ratification as co-owner in February, had immediately identified Ashworth as the candidate they wanted to lead their revolution at United.
The sporting director at Newcastle has close ties to the INEOS Sport team, having worked closely with Sir Dave Brailsford – Ratcliffe’s right-hand man – throughout their respective careers.
INEOS approached the 53-year-old executive over the possibility of relocating from Tyneside to Manchester with Ashworth communicating his desire to accept their offer, and informing Newcastle of this proposal.
The Magpies executive branch did not react well to this development, immediately placing Ashworth on gardening leave and making a demand of £20 million to United for the director to be able to circumvent this notice period.
In response, INEOS cited the unprecedented nature of this figure for a sporting director and refused to pay. They publicly and privately communicated their willingness to play the long game and wait, if needed, for the entirety of Ashworth’s gardening leave before hiring their man.
This morning, as explained in greater detail here, this approach paid dividends with reports United had agreed a compensation deal with Newcastle, allowing Ashworth to join the ranks at Old Trafford and start work immediately.
However, a report by The Sun has now revealed just how effective this hardball approach by INEOS was, with Newcastle accepting an offer of “significantly less than £10 million” to facilitate the deal – a far cry from the dizzying £20 million demands being made a few months ago.
The Sun further contends Newcastle’s financial position, courtesy of acute pressure from the Premier League’s profits and sustainability rules (PSR), forced their executives into accepting United’s offer last night, just hours before Sunday’s PSR deadline (June 30th).
