Manchester United
John Murtough's Man Utd exit and what it means for Dan Ashworth & Jason Wilcox talks
Man Utd confirm departure of football director John Murtough
Club want to hand his responsibilities over to Southampton's Jason Wilcox and Newcastle's Dan Ashworth
Negotiations continue for duo as club restructure takes shape

By Sean Walsh, Ben Jacobs
Apr 9, 2024
Changes are afoot at Old Trafford
Changes are afoot at Old Trafford / David Rogers/Getty Images
Manchester United are continuing their internal restructure with John Murtough stepping aside as the club's football director.

Murtough had long been expected to leave United following the onboarding of Sir Jim Ratcliffe as minority shareholder having purchased a 28% stake in the club this winter.

Ratcliffe has assumed control of footballing operations and Murtough was informed he would only be allowed to stay at United in a diminished role. He has decided to leave on his own terms and has not been forced out of the club.

United confirmed Murtough's exit on Tuesday, with Ratcliffe saying in a statement: "We want to thank John for his loyal service over many years, and for his support and integrity during this period of transition.

"He leaves with our best wishes for the future."

Co-chairman Joel Glazer added: "After 11 years of tireless work for the club, John has mutually agreed with us that now is the right time to step aside and allow the new football leadership structure to be put in place.

"He will always be welcome back at Manchester United as a friend of the club."

Jason Wilcox
Wilcox wants to join Man Utd / Catherine Ivill/GettyImages
90min understands Murtough's responsibilities are set to be assumed by Southampton's Jason Wilcox as technical director and Newcastle's Dan Ashworth as sporting director, though United are continuing with negotiations to bring in the duo.

Wilcox is currently director of football at Southampton, and though he would be taking a step down in terms of job title if he joins United, such a move is still widely viewed as a major promotion - and in fact a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity - by many in the football industry.

A sticking point with Southampton is they received a written commitment from United to pay over a year's worth of Wilcox’s salary to them as compensation, but their latest offer only covered 12-months pay, much to the Saints' dismay. United, however, insist they have been respectful in negotiations and followed due protocol.

United are ultimately relaxed about this situation for various reasons. Southampton's demands are in the hundreds of thousands of pounds as opposed to the £20m that Newcastle are asking for to release Ashworth.

As such, Wilcox is expected to join United prior to the summer transfer window and begin his duties in the near future, arriving likely before incoming CEO Omar Berrada from Manchester City. The club are therefore not in a rush to cave to Newcastle's hefty demands as much of their new footballing structure is likely to be in place in the coming months.

The arrivals of Wilcox and Ashworth are being treated as a matter of 'when' and not 'if', with United prepared to play a lengthy waiting game to bring in the latter to avoid paying a large sum to Newcastle, though it would not be surprising if he joins immediately after the summer window closes for a more modest fee.

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Liverpool
Sporting CP could play hardball over Liverpool's Ruben Amorim negotiations
Liverpool yet to agree personal terms with Amorim despite reports claiming otherwise
Reds must also strike an agreement with Sporting, who could play hardball in search of more money
Amorim's contract includes a €20m release clause

By Tom Gott, Ben Jacobs
Apr 9, 2024
Amorim is a key target for Liverpool
Amorim is a key target for Liverpool / Carlos Rodrigues/GettyImages
Sporting CP could look to complicate Liverpool's interest in manager Ruben Amorim in the hope of extracting a higher compensation fee from the Reds, 90min understands.

With Xabi Alonso publicly confirming his decision to remain with Bayer Leverkusen beyond this season, Amorim has emerged as a leading candidate to replace Jurgen Klopp when he steps down this summer.

Amorim's contract with Sporting includes a release clause worth €20m (£17.1m) for non-Portuguese sides, but sources indicate there is a gentleman's agreement between club and manager which will see Amorim allowed to leave for just €10m (£8.6m) if a 'top European side' makes an offer.

It is the definition of 'top European side' which could complicate any approach from Liverpool. Multiple Sporting claim it refers to any club in a top-five league who are playing Champions League football, and while Liverpool are almost certain to qualify for the competition next season, they are not currently a Champions League side, with last season's struggles leaving them in the Europa League this year.

Should Liverpool approach Sporting now, the Portuguese side could potentially argue that Liverpool do not meet their criteria for a 'top European side' and try to get closer to €15m for Amorim's departure. It is unlikely, given a good relationship between Sporting and Liverpool, that triggering the €20m clause will be necessary.

Liverpool could, of course, just trigger Amorim's release clause to bypass all negotiations with Sporting but they are expected to try and negotiate if they do proceed.

Ruben Amorim
Amorim's contract includes a €20m release clause / Zed Jameson/MB Media/GettyImages
Despite some reports to the contrary, Liverpool sources insist they have not yet reached an agreement with Amorim over personal terms and no candidate in their search to replace Klopp has yet had a formal interview.

Contact has been made with Amorim's agents and financial terms have been discussed, but Liverpool argue this is simply part of their process. Conversations are ongoing over a number of other managerial targets, with the Reds always planning to offer formal interviews to at least three candidates before making a final decision on their top target. This could yet happen quickly and in the month of April.

Amorim has also not made up his mind on his future yet either, but the 39-year-old is expected to speak to Liverpool in the coming days or weeks.

Liverpool want to have wrapped up the signing of their next manager before the current campaign comes to a close, even if a public announcement is delayed until the summer.

Links between Amorim and Chelsea have been downplayed by sources at Stamford Bridge. The Blues are still planning for a future with current boss Mauricio Pochettino, whose position will be reviewed in the summer as part of a long-standing agreement between club and manager.

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Manchester United football director John Murtough steps down

John Murtough is stepping down as football director and leaving Manchester United.

Change is afoot at Old Trafford after Ineos took control of football operations earlier this year as part of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s deal to become minority owner.

They aim to bring in Newcastle sporting director Dan Ashworth and Southampton director of football Jason Wilcox as part of a new-look football leadership team at United that Murtough will not be part of.

The club said in a statement: “John Murtough is to step down from his position as football director of Manchester United and leave the club after almost 11 years in a variety of roles at Carrington.”

Joel Glazer, co-chairman of Manchester United, said: “After 11 years of tireless work for the club, John has mutually agreed with us that now is the right time to step aside and allow the new football leadership structure to be put in place.

“He will always be welcome back at Manchester United as a friend of the club.”

United co-owner Ratcliffe echoed those sentiments as the club starts anew behind the scenes.

“We want to thank John for his loyal service over many years and for his support and integrity during this period of transition,” he said. “He leaves with our best wishes for the future.”

Murtough joined the club from the Premier League in 2013 and went onto become head of football development, before being promoted to football director in March 2021.

That role saw him “have overall leadership and responsibility for operations and strategy across all football functions”.

United now plan for Ashworth to come in as sporting director but have yet to strike a deal with Newcastle, who placed him on gardening leave in February.

The Red Devils have also yet to reach an agreement to bring in Wilcox from Southampton.

The Championship side were angered by the offer of compensation for their director of football – equivalent to a year’s salary – but there is a hope a deal will soon be agreed.

Wilcox, who has a good relationship with incoming United chief executive Omar Berrada from their time together at Manchester City, would join United as technical director.

Darren Fletcher has been working under that title for the last three years and United want him to stay, albeit working under a new job description.

Sir Dave Brailsford, the director of sport at Ineos, is overseeing matters at board level, with remaining members of the leadership team set to lead day-to-day operations following Murtough’s exit.

Deputy football director Andy O’Boyle, director of player negotiations Matt Hargreaves and director of football operations David Harrison are among those figures, as is academy director Nick Cox.