UEFA’s stunning Man Utd reveal which highlights desperation for Dan Ashworth and Newcastle United agreement

A fresh report from UEFA has detailed some of the most expensive squads across Europe with Manchester United overtaking Real Madrid to the top spot. The Red Devils’ squad cost £1.21bn to assemble following transfer fees like £85.5m on Antony and £73m on Jadon Sancho. 

Despite these figures, Manchester United still finished behind Arsenal and Manchester City in the league last season and currently find themselves 13 points behind league leaders Liverpool. This fresh report, therefore, details why it’s little surprise that the Red Devil’s are interested in adding Newcastle United’s sporting director Dan Ashworth to their ranks.

As shown with Brighton and the Magpies, Ashworth has a keen eye in spotting talented players that can be signed and developed at the club without breaking the bank. Manchester United and Newcastle are currently in negotiations over a move for Ashworth with the Magpies reluctant to allow the 52-year-old to leave without being well compensated.

The Red Devils will be hoping Ashworth’s extensive contacts and links within the game can help them bridge the gap between themselves and their rivals - although, as they have discovered, having an expensive squad doesn’t necessarily translate into success. Manchester City’s £1.1bn squad means they sit in second place in UEFA’s findings whilst Chelsea, who currently occupy 10th in the Premier League, have the third most expensive squad in Europe at £927m. Real Madrid (£882m), PSG (£802m), Juventus (£658m) and Inter Milan (£504m) are the only non-English teams in the top 10 with Liverpool (£774m), Arsenal (£761m) and Tottenham Hotspur (£570m) rounding off the ten most expensively assembled squads in Europe.

Barcelona (£493m) sit 11th and just above Newcastle United whose squad cost £464m to assemble according to UEFA. These figures take into account every transfer completed before the end of the 2023 financial year.

Newcastle’s purchases of Sven Botman, Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon and Bruno Guimaraes would be taken into account in this data, however, moves for Harvey Barnes, Sandro Tonali and Tino Livramento are not reflected.

The Magpies signed just Manchester City’s Alfie Harrison during the January transfer window as they battled to ensure they stayed within the boundaries set out by FFP and PSR.