Newcastle United search for a Director of Football has taken a fresh twist today, with several reports claiming we’re now in talks to bring Brighton’s Dan Ashworth to St James’ Park.
Sky Sports have confirmed that we’ve been given permission to hold talks with the highly-rated 50-year-old, with The Athletic and The Telegraph also revealing that he is now a serious contender for the job.
Ashworth has previously worked at the FA, where he did great work within the England set up, and almost got a top job at Manchester United before arriving at Brighton; where has has appointed Graham Potter and secured a host of impressive signings to help the Seagulls go from relegation contenders to top 10 hopefuls.
The Athletic report that, while the Saudi consortium’s immediate focus is on January signings that would help the club survive this season, they are working away in the background to ‘lay the foundations for a better future’.
David Ornstein believes that Ashworth – the current technical director at The Amex – ‘ranks highly’ among the candidates being considered for the DoF role on Tyneside.
That said, others are set to hold talks with the club in what appears to be an extensive search that is unlikely to conclude until after the January transfer window as closed.
The Athletic also state that a settlement fee would need to be negotiated between Newcastle and Brighton should we opt for Ashworth – although it would only come to that if the 50-year-old pushed for the move to St James’ Park.
