Manchester United risk ‘tapping up’ investigation over Dan Ashworth email to Omar Berrada

Manchester United are at risk of a tapping-up investigation after Newcastle United discovered emails suggesting Omar Berrada secretly wooed Dan Ashworth in early February.

Incoming chief executive Berrada was still serving his period of gardening leave at Manchester City when Ashworth copied a message intended for him to his own account at Newcastle.

The email, discovered in recent weeks by Newcastle, was sent weeks before Ashworth told executives at the north-east club that he wanted to stand down as director of football to join Manchester United.

Such approaches without permission from the target club can prompt investigations from authorities, but it is understood no official complaint has been made to either the Premier League or the Football Association yet.

Instead, there is a growing expectation that Newcastle will instead use their proof of contact three months ago as leverage to force Manchester United to pay the compensation they are looking for. The email blunder by Ashworth, who appears to have sent the message to himself by blank carbon copy, could also land United in trouble with City, given Berrada was still officially on the rival club’s staff.

In the email, Ashworth is also said to have disclosed details to Berrada of the confidential agreement Newcastle struck with Brighton to bring him to the north-east in 2022. Both United’s declined to comment, but multiple sources confirmed a report, first detailed in the Daily Mail, that Ashworth sent an email CCing his Newcastle account to Berrada’s Ineos account.

The message is said to “make it clear” he wanted to accept the opportunity of becoming Manchester United’s sporting director. Ashworth, 53, has been on gardening leave since stepping down as Newcastle’s sporting director on Feb 18, having informed the Tyneside club he was interested in a move to Old Trafford.

The email discovery will only serve to heighten tensions behind the scenes, with The Telegraph reporting three weeks ago how Ashworth was set to take Newcastle to arbitration in an attempt to force through the move amid an increasingly acrimonious stand-off. Initially, Sir Jim Ratcliffe offered just over £2 million as compensation, which was dismissed out of hand.

Newcastle are seen as likely to be willing to compromise on initial demands of £20 million, however. One source said the email showing Ashworth was tapped up dramatically strengthens Newcastle’s hand although legal options will also be looked at. Ashworth declined to comment when contacted by The Telegraph.

The Old Trafford hierarchy feel their approach for Ashworth is no different to the way Newcastle pursued the former Football Association technical director when he was at Brighton and have been surprised by the Tyneside club’s financial demands.

Privately, United, who are operating to a tight budget this summer, feel that the extra £10 million-plus it might take solely to shorten Ashworth’s gardening leave would be better invested in playing talent. Ratcliffe has been critical publicly of Newcastle’s positioning and their determination to hold Ashworth to the full length of his gardening leave, which is thought to run until late next year, unless their demands are met in full.

Speaking in February, Ratcliffe, who has assumed complete control of football operations at United as part of his £1.3 billion deal for a 27.7 per cent stake in the club, said: “I think Dan Ashworth is clearly one of the top sporting directors in the world, I’ve no doubt. “He’s a very capable person. He’s interested in the Manchester United job because it’s probably the biggest sporting director job in the world just now, with the biggest challenge. “We’ve obviously had words with Newcastle.

They would clearly be disappointed to lose Dan. But what I do think is completely absurd is suggesting a man who is really good at his job sits in his garden for one and a half years.” Ratcliffe suggested Ashworth’s gardening leave term expires next year. United separately appointed Jason Wilcox as technical director last month.

The Premier League rule book states that each club, director and official should behave towards each other with the “utmost good faith” and it would be a breach if they were to “act dishonestly towards another club or engage in conduct that is intended to circumvent these rules”.