Everton are reportedly interested in appointing Dan Ashworth as the club’s new sporting director.
Ashworth recently left his position as sporting director at Manchester United after just five months in the role.
Before that, the 53-year-old had established a reputation for being one of the best in his industry after being commended for his work at Brighton & Hove Albion and Newcastle United.
Everton News exclusively revealed that Ashworth is linked with the Toffees and could take the sporting director role, currently held by Kevin Thelwell, who is out of contract at the end of the season.
So, with Ashworth looking like he could make the move to Goodison Park, here is everything you need to know about one of the most-talked about men in English football.
- READ MORE: It’s obvious who Dan Ashworth’s first signing at Everton could be if he replaces Kevin Thelwell
Who is Dan Ashworth?
Dan Ashworth is a former professional footballer-turned-sporting director.
During his playing days, Ashworth started out at the Norwich City youth team before spells in non-league at Eastbourne Town, St. Leonards and Wisbech Town.
He was born in Norfolk on 6 March 1971, making him 53 at the time of writing.
Dan Ashworth career
His first off-pitch job was academy director at Peterborough United in 2000 before joining rivals Cambridge United as Centre of Excellence Director the following year.
After working as a youth team assistant and youth team manager at West Bromwich Albion, Ashworth then joined the FA in 2012 to become Director of Elite Development as they re-shaped the identity of English football going forward.
His work was widely praised as he helped to build the foundations that has since seen England restore themselves as one of the best teams in the world again.
Brighton won the race to appoint him as technical director in 2018, where he continued the good work and is responsible for the work behind the scenes that has established them as one of the best-run clubs in England.
He would leave his role for Newcastle in 2022 after their big-money takeover, helping to secure signings that would guide them to the Champions League.
A back and forth between the Magpies and Man United eventually saw him move to Old Trafford where he only lasted briefly before departing in December 2024.
Why did Dan Ashworth leave Man United?
Despite all of the hype around his appointment, it’s fair to say that Ashworth’s time at Man United can only be looked back on as an abject failure.
Ashworth was wanted by the new INEOS regime following Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s appointment but struggled to do a deal with Newcastle, who wanted up to £20m in compensation.
Eventually, a deal was agreed and Ashworth was placed on gardening leave at Newcastle before being given permission to start working for the club at the end of last season.
The 53-year-old was part of a new-look team that featured Omar Berrada and Jason Wilcox but reportedly failed to connect with either of the two and left by mutual consent at the start of December 2024.
Since then, reports have claimed that Ashworth wanted Gareth Southgate to replace Erik ten Hag instead of Ruben Amorim and oversaw an expensive summer of recruitment where over £200m was spent on new players.
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