Thread by @the_art_of_7

Dan Ashworth: A Mega Thread

His name has been getting a lot of buzz lately, as it seems that he's become the frontrunner to become the new Director of Football under Sir Jim Ratcliffe's regime.

In this thread, I'll explain what Ashworth is about and what he brings to the table.

Ashworth's first job in football came back in 2000 as the Director of Peterborough United's academy.

He then became the Center of Excellence director at Cambridge United in 2001 and would stay there till 2004.

In 2004, he moved to West Brom as an assistant youth manager. From there, he'd be promoted to youth manager, and then club Sporting and Technical Director in 2007.

The role of Technical Director wasn't very common in English football. West Brom's chairman, Jeremy Pearce however, had spent time all across Europe and believed that Ashworth fulfilled all the boxes of being a top TD.

The goal of bringing in Dan Ashworth as a technical and sporting director was to steer West Brom on a path where they could become a mainstay in the Premier League, and while there were bumps on the road, he'd get there.

During this time, foundations were being laid, mainly through the use of "the Shire".

In Ashworth's words, "we had a small, cupboard-like, room called the Shire and we put some satellite boxes in there to record games from all the world."

This innovation would be made in the summer of 2010 after regaining Premier League status by finishing second in the Championship.

In the 2010/11 season, West Brom would comfortably finish 11th and consolidate their Premier League the following season finishing 10th.

The Shire would be pivotal in how the Baggies operated, as they'd go on to sign Gareth McAuley, Ben Foster, Shane Long, Craig Dawson and Peter Odemwingie via the Shire.

Dan Ashworth did exactly what he was trusted to do, make West Brom a permanent fixture in the Premier League.

He was immensely shrewd in his signings but equally as candid with how he supervised the academy, integrating Saido Berahino, Chris Wood, and Izzy Brown.

From there, in 2012, he took the job as the FA Director of Elite Development.

As the Director of Elite Development, he was tasked to create a DNA, a tangible identity for the English national team setup that would be seen from the u16s to the senior team.

Dan Ashworth was a big part in making St. George what it is today.

He came shortly after it was built and quickly went about making the place where there was a plausible pathway from the youth setup to the senior team, also promoting togetherness within the groups.

He was in charge of orchestrating how the youth setup would have a philosophy on how to play the game.

He massively rebuilt the coaching structure of the youth setup, reintroduced the u-18s and u-20s along with making the u-15 team.

The aim was to instill versatility into the youth squads and have that be phased into the first team, similarly to how France had created Clairefontaine back in 1988.

It worked a treat as England would go on to win the u-17 and u-20 World Cup, the u-17 Euros twice, and the u-19 Euros once.

Every player in England's squad has played youth team football under Ashworth's directory except Kyle Walker.

The likes of Jordan Henderson and Raheem Sterling have a bit of experience under his directory while Bellingham, Foden, Saka, and Rashford have grown up under it.

In 2019, Dan Ashworth would then take his talents to Brighton.

At Brighton, their owner Tony Bloom had already set the groundwork for a good scouting department as he'd founded Starlizard, a sports data analytics firm.

Tony Bloom needed a man who could optimize his resources as much as possible, and Dan Ashworth was just the man to do it.

Under Dan Ashworth, the likes of Mitoma, McCallister, Simon Adingra, Julio Enciso, Evan Ferguson, Caicedo, Bissouma, and Trossard.

And while he made these key signings, it was his ability to plot out a vision for Brighton that highlighted his genius.

Under Dan Ashworth, Graham Potter came in to take the reins from Chris Hughton.

And while Hughton kept the Seagulls in the top flight, Ashworth's ideas went above just survival but again created an identity, one which Graham Potter fit in.

He'd create a structure that would allow for signings to have as easy of a transition into life at Brighton as possible.

The priority was to sign players who'd fit their vision, and while Ashworth had a massive part in signings, his ability to create that vision is the most impressive feat he had at Brighton.

And obviously there's the job he's done at Newcastle, where he's once again created a clear identity.

He's made signings that fit Eddie Howe's ethos, and he's helped create a pathway for the youth, which has helped the likes of Elliot Anderson and Lewis Miley.

So how does this translate to Manchester United?

I believe he'll be tasked to create order and a clear structure for players to thrive in. He'll create a vision in which players will fit in and will ultimately simplify Erik Ten Hag's job.

Our academy is in its best state since the class of '92 and we need a man who can create a clear pathway for the likes of Lacey, Gore, Fitzgerald, Isak Hansen Aaroen and co.

Dan Ashworth's time in the FA shows that he's more than capable of the job at hand.

He'll identify those who are ready for the first team and keep them in mind while building the squad when signing players.

Therefore, he massively simplifies what Ten Hag needs to do when integrating talent from the academy, something he isn't afraid via his Ajax tenure with Marc Overmars.

Dan Ashworth is a pioneer in the English game, and I do believe if Sir Jim Ratcliffe can pull this coup off, United will be more than able to reach their former glory.

He's a master of creating an atmosphere and philosophy that players thrive in and it seems as though it won't just be him coming in.

If reports are true, we could see him coming in with Paul Mitchell, with Paul Mitchell having a role more focused on recruitment.

If true, my guess would be that Dan Ashworth would be the Technical Director, and Murtough and Darren Flectcher would be demoted from their current positions, most likely to overseeing the academy.

A board consisting of JCB as CEO, Dan Ashworth as TD, and Paul Mitchell as Sporting Director, the sky is the limit.

But time will tell, but the future looks bright once SJR gets sporting control.

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Thank you for reading.