Sir Dave Brailsford's 'first choice' for new Man Utd sporting director 'revealed' as ex-Liverpool men linked

Sir Dave Brailsford prefers former Liverpool chief Julian Ward to become Manchester United’s sporting director.

As part of his remit by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the new minority stakeholder at Old Trafford, the Ineos chief is carrying out a full audit at the club. The Premier League are yet to confirm Ratcliffe as passing the owners’ and directors’ tests but that has not stopped the prospective shot-callers from making their presence known at United.

Brailsford was Ratcliffe’s right-hand man at Team Sky and continues to be so for all of Ineos’ sporting ventures. The 59-year-old has overseen transformations at British Cycling and continues to play a key role at Ligue 1 outfit Nice, a club Ratcliffe also owns.

A drastic shake-up at United is expected, with fans clamouring for a modern rebrand. John Murtough is set to be axed as director of football and the Ineos supremo will make a heavyweight appointment to kick-start a new era.

The Independent claim Brailsford has drawn up a four-man shortlist to kick-start the sporting revolution at Old Trafford. His preferred choice is understood to be ex-Liverpool chief Ward, who resigned from a similar role with the Reds after just a year in charge.

Ward spent 11 years at Anfield in total, primarily as a scout before landing the top job. His predecessor as sporting director, Michael Edwards, masterminded the most successful Liverpool era in a generation during his seven-year reign and is also on Brailsford’s shortlist.

However, Edwards reportedly has no interest in returning to a senior role in football. Monaco kingpin Paul Mitchell is the third man on Brailsford’s shortlist and, as a Manchester native, would be open to the move.

Mitchell hails from Stalybridge and is experienced in English football, having been a key player at Tottenham Hotspur when they signed Kieran Trippier, Heung-min Son, Dele Alli and Toby Alderweireld. The final man Brasilford has touted is Dan Ashworth, the Newcastle chief widely viewed as one of the best operators in English football.

Ashworth was previously linked with the United gig before joining Brighton in 2019. But the report claims he will not jump ship so soon into the Saudi-backed project at St James’ Park.