Dan Ashworth made position clear on Man United handing Erik ten Hag new deal

Dan Ashworth is a fan of Erik ten Hag's continued stay at Manchester United - having previously underlined the need for consistency at a football club.

News of the Dutchman signing a new contract until 2026 was announced on Thursday (July 4) just three days after Ashworth's appointment as United's new sporting director was confirmed.

The ex-sporting director at Newcastle had been on gardening leave since February after telling his former club of his intention to depart for Manchester, but, due to an out-of-court settlement being agreed between the two sides, the 53-year-old has been freed up to begin his new role under Sir Jim Ratcliffe.

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Having branded Ten Hag as one of the "most successful coaches in European football", Ashworth previously spoke about the importance a manager plays in having the same philosophy as the club and the trickle-down effect it has on the reserves and academy sides.

"You hire a coach that matches the philosophy that the club thinks they want to go," he told BT Sport during his time at Brighton. "What Tony and the board wouldn’t do is hire a coach that’s totally against the direction of travel they want the club to go in. My job is to stitch that together.

"It is then about making sure that the U23s, U18s and Academy put the right plans around the young players to give them every chance of being able to play for Brighton and Graham.

United's Adidas home shirt is made up of the same colour of the city's iconic red rose and features a black collar. The collar also features a dash of both red