Man Utd takeover: Ex-Celtic and Sunderland chief 'considered' for key role

Sunderland’s former sporting director Lee Congerton is reportedly one option to take on the same role at Manchester United.

The Red Devils are looking for a new sporting director after it was announced Richard Arnold would leave his role at Old Trafford, with Sir Jim Ratcliffe's deal for a 25 per cent stake in the club nearing its completion.

Ratcliffe and his Ineos consortium are in the final stages of the negotiations for him to purchase 25 percent of the club’s shares for a fee of around £1.3bn. Once that is agreed, the deal will need to be ratified with the Premier League while there will also be a gap in order to comply with public company regulations.

According to the Telegraph, Ratcliffe is expected to take advice from Sir Alex Ferguson, who is an admirer of Crystal Palace’s sporting director Dougie Freedman. The report claims Congerton is also being considered, along with former AC Milan duo Paolo Maldini and Ricky Massara and Atletico Madrid’s Andrea Berta.

Congerton was appointed head of international development at Italian club Atalanta last year, after spells at Celtic and Leicester, where he held head of recruitment roles. The 50-year-old spent a year and a half at Sunderland before leaving the club at the end of 2015, following Sam Allardyce’s appointment on Wearside.