Ruben Amorim promised that a storm would come in his early weeks as Manchester United head coach, and he was more prescient than perhaps even he realised.

United’s first defeat under their new boss, a 2-0 loss to Arsenal, was followed three days later by their second. Nottingham Forest claimed a first victory at Old Trafford in 30 years on December 7, winning 3-2 to leave the Red Devils 13th in the Premier League, on the day that Storm Darragh caused chaos across the UK.

Less than 24 hours later, there was more significant news coming out of the club. Dan Ashworth, the man appointed sporting director by INEOS and tasked with overseeing much of the new regime’s operations, was gone.

In a brief statement on December 8, United said: “Dan Ashworth will be leaving his role as sporting director of Manchester United by mutual agreement.

“We would like to thank Dan for his work and support in a transitional period for the club and wish him well for the future.”

What brought about this sudden and dramatic departure of a figure that United fought hard to hire in the first place?

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Why did Dan Ashworth leave Man United?

Ashworth’s departure as sporting director was first reported by The Athletic’s Laurie Whitwell, with United confirming the news at 10:30 a.m. local time on December 8.

The club’s official position was that Ashworth’s exit was by mutual consent. This corroborated The Athletic’s initial story, although the publication also claimed “United instigated the separation” with minority owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe “pivotal to the call to part ways”. Indeed, it seems a clash of personalities in the club’s powerbrokers may have been at the heart of the call.

There was no clear reason given at first. After all, Ashworth was hired at no small expense — United paid between £2-3 million ($2.6-$3.8m) in compensation to bring him to Old Trafford after months of talks with former employers Newcastle United — and he was seen as a key figure when it came to the task of restoring the club to their position of pre-eminence on and off the field. Given he spent five months on gardening leave while Man United attempted to push through his appointment, the fact he left after spending the same amount of time doing the job is not a good look for the club or INEOS.

Details later emerged around the possible reasons behind his exit. A report from talkSPORT’s Alex Crook indicated it may actually have been brewing for some time. The story claimed Ashworth felt “sidelined from the big decisions” with CEO Omar Berrada and Sir Dave Brailsford, the director of sport for INEOS also involved in the running of United’s operations. The “tipping point”, Crook said, was the appointment of Ruben Amorim as head coach: Ashworth reportedly favoured a British hire, with former England boss Gareth Southgate touted as the possible replacement for Erik ten Hag.

A further in-depth account from The Athletic suggested Ratcliffe had gradually come to doubt Ashworth’s credentials for the role, despite branding him “10 out of 10” when he was hired. Ratcliffe, the report says, felt Ashworth did not show enough “decisiveness” when it came to suggestions for Ten Hag’s replacement, with the sporting director said to favour candidates with Premier League experience, or ones he already knew. Similarly, Ratcliffe was reportedly unimpressed at Ashworth’s proposal to outsource data analysis of candidates to another company rather than oversee such matters himself.

Ultimately, it appears Ashworth simply did not enjoy a productive working relationship in United’s new hierarchy. Despite the shock among staff at his departure, cutting ties was seen as the best option — even if this makes his initial appointment look like yet another mistake by the club.

Who will replace Dan Ashworth at Man United?

It’s not clear whether United will hire a direct replacement for Ashworth or simply reorganise things with the staff they have.

With Brailsford and Berrada in charge, Jason Wilcox serving as technical director and Christopher Vivell the head of recruitment, there’s a real risk of “too many cooks” within United’s executive structure if they replace Ashworth like for like.

Who did Dan Ashworth sign at Man United?

Ashworth only had one transfer window at United, having only started work at the club after the mid-season window in 2023/24 closed.

He was part of the decision-making team that ultimately kept Ten Hag as manager after the FA Cup final win in May, just as he was in October, when the club sacked the Dutchman.

Ashworth was a driving force in a gross spend of around £200m ($280m) this summer as the Red Devils signed Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs de Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui and Joshua Zirkzee. It has been suggested most of these signings were made with a long-term plan in mind, rather than a case of Ten Hag selecting specific players — Zirkzee, in particular, was viewed as a “club” signing — although the manager undoubtedly had some say.

At the same time, Ashworth oversaw a number of departures to balance the squad and the books. Scott McTominay, Mason Greenwood, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, Willy Kambwala and Facundo Pellistri were among those sold as United recouped around £85m ($108m) in transfer fees alone, while the wage bill was lightened thanks to Jadon Sancho’s loan to Chelsea and the release of Anthony Martial and Raphael Varane when their contracts expired.