Dan Ashworth has left his role as Manchester United‘s sporting director after just five months.

Dan Ashworth officially joined United on July 1 after a lengthy gardening leave at his former club, Newcastle United, but the transition has not been smooth, and his exit has been decided upon.

Ashworth’s departure was agreed in a meeting with chief executive Omar Berrada at Old Trafford after United’s Premier League game with Nottingham Forest on Saturday evening.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe has been pivotal to the call to part ways, in a move that will stun staff at United given Ashworth’s prominence in trying to reshape the club.

Multiple sources say United instigated the separation. The club say the final agreement to end Ashworth’s contract was mutual.

The new Ratcliffe-led hierarchy, overseen by Sir Dave Brailsford, had placed Ashworth in overall charge of football performance, recruitment, and operations, with Jason Wilcox, also a new arrival, reporting to him as technical director.

All the executives agreed to keep Erik ten Hag as manager, with Ashworth quoted on the official announcement of the Dutchman’s extended contract in June.

Ashworth was also involved in a summer of heavy spending at Old Trafford, which included the arrivals of Leny Yoro, Manuel Ugarte, Matthijs De Ligt, Noussair Mazraoui, and Joshua Zirkzee in an outlay of around £200million ($280m). Ashworth was quoted on the confirmation of each signing.

He was a voice in Ten Hag’s dismissal in October too, but there were no words from any executives to accompany the appointment of Ruben Amorim, with Berrada a driving force behind that appointment.