What Newcastle are expected to do now after Dan Ashworth’s revelation at Manchester United

The Red Devils were unwilling to meet Newcastle’s compensation demands, with the Magpies unwilling to sanction his move to Old Trafford.

It was a messy situation, and one that suddenly got even messier with arbitration on the horizon.

Dan Ashworth blundered to give Newcastle an edge in Man United negotiations

On Tuesday night, news broke that Dan Ashworth had told Manchester United he was interested in becoming their sporting director before the Red Devils made a formal approach. The Daily Mail exclusive said Ashworth emailed Omar Berrada about his interest but accidentally included an official Newcastle United email address.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that Berrada had not officially started his role as Man United’s new chief executive and was still on gardening leave from Manchester City at the time.

The Telegraph reported that the blunder is expected to give Newcastle an advantage as they go in search of the compensation they are seeking.

What Dan Ashworth plans to do amid Newcastle United fury

But Dan Ashworth appears to have a new plan of attack, with an update from the Telegraph stating that the former FA boss will claim he was sacked by the Magpies rather than placed on gardening leave.

They report that Ashworth’s argument is that he was not asked to submit a written resignation before being put on gardening leave, meaning he was removed from his role rather than resigning.

The Telegraph say Newcastle are “stunned” by the approach and are “furious” at how they believe Ashworth has misled them.

They add that the club now want to speak formally to Man United in the hope that they will increase their compensation offer to a more suitable amount before arbitration begins.

Newcastle will want to see the back of this messy situation

This situation is an absolute mess. Newcastle United are understandably furious, while Ashworth and Man United’s new ownership have come out of it looking awful.

Ashworth was seen as Newcastle’s savior when he first arrived, seen as the man to guide the club to an extremely bright future. And while he certainly did a good job at St James’ Park, this move to Man United and how it went about tarnished his reputation among Toon fans.

For Newcastle, they are rightly upset and want the compensation they feel they are owed. I am certainly now in a stronger position to achieve this after the disclosure of Ashworth’s email activity.

It’s not a good look for Ashworth and Newcastle United will be happy when this is all over.

Without him, they are closing in on offers for Lloyd Kelly and Tosin Adarabioyo and hope to announce their new sporting director very soon.

Similar topics