Journalist Ben Jacobs claims Southampton’s Jason Wilcox may be named when Manchester United names Dan Ashworth of Newcastle United as their next sports director at Old Trafford.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the chairman of INEOS, has lately taken a minority stake in the Red Devils. He will replace the Glazers in all football-related operations.

Erik ten Hag, the head coach, is hoping to persuade over the last several months of the 2023–2024 season, although he is cautious that a new administration may raise doubts about his qualification for the position. Ashworth was put on gardening leave at Newcastle because Manchester United was interested in hiring him; an appointment is very certain to be made soon.

Man Utd’s aim at Wilcox and Ashworth
Ratcliffe may now begin appointing people at Old Trafford with the intention of restructuring the Manchester United organisation, since the FA and Premier League approved INEOS’ partial acquisition of the team in February. Omar Berrada, a choice selected by the Glazers and authorised by INEOS in January, has already been appointed as United’s next CEO.

EPL: María Berrada
On his Here We Go podcast (available on mufcMPB on X), Fabrizio Romano asserts that talks between Manchester United and Newcastle about Ashworth’s compensation are still in progress. In order to have the 52-year-old begin playing for the Red Devils in time for the 2024 summer transfer window to open, the team is attempting to reach an agreement. Jones stated to GIVEMESPORT on February 23 that the Man Utd-Ashworth negotiations will probably move fast forward.

According to David Ornstein of The Athletic, Manchester United is also negotiating to hire Southampton’s Wilcox as director of football. The Saints player’s intended position would see him report to Ashworth in a recruiting capacity if both are hired. As recently as January 2023, Wilcox held the position of academy director for Manchester City, one of United’s closest competitors.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: The Glazers have been in charge of a £2.1 billion expenditure since moving to Old Trafford.

At the Etihad Stadium, the 52-year-old managed the growth of Phil Foden, Rico Lewis, Oscar Bobb, and Cole Palmer of Chelsea before deciding to part ways with the lone Champions League champions last season. Ratcliffe expects that the hiring of Ashworth and Wilcox will mark the beginning of a reform in the club’s administrative procedures.

Man Utd transactions under the Glazers’ records

Participant

Cost

Pogba Paul (Juventus)

£90 million

Ajax, or Antony

£81 million

Leicester City’s Harry Maguire

£75 million

Jadon Sancho, a member of Dortmund

£73 million

Lukaku Romelu (Everton)

£73 million

Di Maria Angel (Real Madrid)

£64 million

Hojlund Rasmus (Atalanta)

£64 million

Real Madrid player Casemiro

£61 million

Sporting CP’s Bruno Fernandes

£56 million

Chelsea’s Mason Mount

£55 million

Ben Jacobs: Ashworth and Wilcox will be involved in the process of choosing Manchester United’s “dream manager.”
According to Jacobs, INEOS has a “dream structure” in mind for Manchester United, after which they will choose a manager they believe has the ability to lead them to success. Ten Hag may be chosen as the best head coach at Old Trafford, the writer has emphasised. As Jacobs stated to GIVEMESPORT:

“INEOS doesn’t seem to have a dream manager,” I believe there is a dream structure, and people making decisions about the so-called dream manager are not even in position until that structure is constructed. INEOS chose Omar Berrada for this reason. Then, given how close that is, we anticipate Ashworth and maybe Jason Wilcox. These individuals will choose the ideal manager, in addition to Ratcliffe and Jean-Claude Blanc.

As corny as it may seem, they won’t know who the ideal manager is until they’ve visited the team and evaluated the football department. It is important to note that Ten Hag might stay and end up being the ideal manager. He was not fired ahead of time. As of right now, nothing is certain.

News on Man Utd transfers, including a claim regarding Bruno Fernandes’ future
After a quiet winter transfer window, Manchester United hopes to have Ashworth leading the team’s transfer operations prior to the 2024 summer transfer window. With a reconstruction perhaps in the works, the Red Devils will need to think about the future of a few of their most important players in ten Hag’s team.

Transfer source Dean Jones recently discussed Bruno Fernandes’ future at Manchester United with GIVEMESPORT on February 29. According to the journalist, Fernandes may be traded for one of the club’s more seasoned players as the Red Devils look to assemble a squad for the upcoming two to four years.

Regarding managers, Football Insider has revealed that Roberto De Zerbi, the manager of Brighton & Hove Albion, is a candidate to take over as Manchester United’s head coach in the near future. In his two seasons at the Amex Stadium, the Italian has made an impressive impression, helping the Seagulls to an FA Cup semifinal and sixth place in the Premier League. He now has to wait until March for a two-leg Europa League final-16 matchup with Roma.