9 months ago
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Gary Neville believes incoming Manchester United sporting director Dan Ashworth will make it a priority to find out why Declan Rice snubbed a move to Old Trafford.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s Old Trafford revolution is gathering pace and the acquisition of the highly respected Ashworth, who has worked wonders at the likes of Newcastle and Brighton, will galvanise United’s recruitment set-up.
A succession ofUnited managers have squandered untold millions on a a series of expensive flops, but Ashworth’s track record suggests all that is about to change.
As well as focusing on the rationale behind signing the likes of Antony who has failed to justify his hefty price tag, Neville is sure Ashworth will want to investigate Rice’s decision to join the Gunners in the summer.
The former West Ham captain had been coveted by United in the past but when the England star eventually decided the time was right to leave the Hammers, United were nowhere close to being in the running for his signature.
‘Do you know what I think he will do [Dan Ashworth]?’ Neville told his fellow Overlap panelists. ‘He will look back at analysis because he is that type of guy, he’ll definitely look at who has signed off on the players that have been signed over the past two or three years.
‘Because they’ll be reports there, they’ll be names against who has signed off on players – he’ll definitely do all of that.
‘He’ll definitely look at things like the players they missed out on, and what was said about those players.
‘Say, Luis Díaz goes to Liverpool, or Declan Rice goes to Arsenal, they’ll look at what they were we saying about Declan Rice, because that historically was a Manchester player, Declan Rice.
‘The best player in England, who was at another club like West Ham, United would sign that player.
‘To sort of access the staff that are in there now. He’ll be looking at everything in detail, he is so detailed.
‘I do think there will be change – whether that brings success or not, but there will be change in terms of everything that goes on.
And it’s needed, they’ve operated for 10 years without a Sporting Director – with a manager and Ed Woodward, who is predominantly banker and financier.’
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