Newcastle United and Leeds United ‘make contact’ for PL midfielder, Everton set ‘£25m’ asking price for Toon and Aston Villa target

The Magpies have shortlisted The Seagulls’ technical director as a potential recruit for the same role at St James’s Park.

Last month, The Athletic reported that Newcastle had been given permission to speak with Ashworth after making contact with Brighton.

The 50-year-old has previously worked in a similar role at West Bromwich Albion and as The Football Association’s director of elite development.

He was with the England squad as they were beaten 2-1 in the World Cup semi-final by Croatia back in 2018. Magpies target Kieran Trippier was famously on the scoresheet for The Three Lions that day.

Brighton manager Graham Potter has worked alongside Ashworth since he became the club’s technical director in 2019. While Potter would not comment on the Newcastle interest, he has praised the job Ashworth has done at The Amex over the past three seasons.

“He’s been great to work with,” Potter said in his pre-Everton press conference. “I didn’t know Dan [Ashworth] before I came here.

“He’s fantastic at this job. He’s incredibly organised and links the club really well. He’s helped, I’m helped and we’re all helped by having a fantastic chairman who sets the tone for everything, provides a fantastic direction for us all, so we’re all able to do our jobs really well.

“Tony [Bloom] is really supportive of Dan, myself, and everybody.

“Dan has been brilliant for me. I can’t comment on speculation but he’s been a key part of what we’ve done and helped incredibly with me and my staff. He’s played a huge role.”