Sir Jim Ratcliffe is about to make decision that Dan Ashworth tried to stop before Manchester United sack

Sir Jim Ratcliffe decided to sack Manchester United’s new sporting director Dan Ashworth earlier this season despite being in the job less than six months.

Manchester United were taken over by Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his INEOS group at the beginning of 2024 and they have since made several controversial decisions.

Fans are yet to see the benefits on the pitch. In fact, the club could be set to have their worst-ever season in Premier League history.

Price hikes on tickets at Old Trafford have caused anger while Ratcliffe has already trimmed the workforce by over 250 staff members.

It has recently been reported that the British billionaire could be set to make another 100-200 redundancies at the club this year.

Ratcliffe making United decision Ashworth tried to stop

One decision made which baffled supporters was the sacking of Dan Ashworth as sporting director after a long-drawn saga which saw the executive sit on Gardening Leave from Newcastle United for around six months.

He wasn’t even at Old Trafford for that amount of time before receiving the sack, with technical director Jason Wilcox since taking over his duties.

Previous reports stated that one of the many reasons for Ashworth’s sacking was due to his reluctance to accept the job cuts planned for the football department at Old Trafford.

Now, a fresh report from The Athletic states that within the latest cuts, the football department is expected to be hit.

The report claimed that Ashworth’s reluctance to this beforehand brought him into dispute with co-owner Ratcliffe.

It remains to be seen how impactful these changes will be to the club. This also follows recent reports which claimed INEOS were unhappy with the setup of the club’s data department.

INEOS have to deliver for sceptical United fans

No one expected United to be able to get back to the top without some unpopular decisions being made but Ratcliffe and his team also need to recognise that progression needs to be seen.

Their first summer transfer window, where they spent over £200 million, was decent at best and very questionable at worst.

Extending Erik ten Hag’s contract in the summer, only to sack him nine games into the Premier League season, was also amateurish and extremely predictable. A decision which ended up costing the club over £20 million.

Ashworth’s dismissal was another example of a huge mistake by the new regime in their short time in charge so far.

Read More: Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS release ‘cost-saving’ statement after Manchester United owners SUED over payment failure

Ultimately, these big decisions might have needed to be made, but INEOS need to start delivering on their side of the bargain because a lot of United fans remain extremely sceptical after some of their mistakes.

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