Dan Ashworth has left his role as Manchester United sporting director after just five months at Old Trafford.
Manchester United are understood to have led the decision for Ashworth to leave, with the final decision mutually agreed.
His exit will come as a huge surprise given he only formally took up the position on July 1. Ashworth had been head-hunted from Newcastle United and his appointment involved a lengthy period of gardening leave.
However, the overhaul of the Manchester United board has not run as ‘smoothly’ as hoped and The Athletic have now revealed that a decision has been made for Ashworth to depart.
Ashworth was placed in charge of football performance, recruitment and operations and oversaw a summer spend of around £200m on new signings. Jason Wilcox, who also arrived as technical director in the summer, worked alongside him.
The summer signings at Manchester United included the arrivals of Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs De Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee to mixed success to date.
United are currently 13th in the Premier League table after losing at home to Nottingham Forest on Saturday evening. It is the lowest the Red Devils have been at this stage of a Premier League campaign.
Amorim insists Manchester United progress will be a ‘long journey’
Speaking after the defeat to Nottingham Forest, a second successive league loss for the club, new head coach Ruben Amorim urged for patience with his team.
“We had not a lot of quality but a lot of heart,” he opined to Sky Sports after the final whistle.
“After the first goal we had good moments creating chances but we went forward without thinking – we have address it and it’s a long journey. It’s a tough context but we have to understand this is a long journey and that’s what our jobs are.”
