Dan Ashworth has left his role as Manchester United's sporting director just five months after his arrival.
The 53-year-old moved to Old Trafford at the start of July following a period of gardening leave at former club Newcastle United.
However, according to The Athletic, Ashworth's departure was agreed following Saturday's 3-2 defeat to Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.
The report claims that the Englishman's 'transition has not been smooth', and following a meeting with CEO Omar Berrada at Old Trafford on Saturday, it was agreed that Ashworth would depart.
Man United's new minority shareholder Sir Jim Ratcliffe is said to have been 'pivotal' in the final call, with it being decided that it would be best for Ashworth to leave just five months into his time at the club.
© Imago
Man United confirm Ashworth has left Old Trafford
The Red Devils are therefore now on the lookout for a new sporting director during another turbulent period, with Ruben Amorim recently arriving as the new head coach.
Amorim suffered his first home defeat since arriving at Man United on Saturday, with the 20-time English champions going down 3-2 to Forest in the Premier League.
The Red Devils, who return to action against Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League on Thursday night, released a statement confirming the news after rumours of his departure surfaced.
"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 during a transitional period for the club and wish him well for the future," said the club.
According to talkSPORT, there was 'a personality clash' between Berrada and Ashworth, and the latter has seemingly paid for playing a leading role in deciding to keep now former Red Devils boss Erik ten Hag as head coach over the summer.
Matt Law
