Dan Ashworth has returned to football with another role, this time at the FA, following brief stints at Newcastle and Manchester.

The former Newcastle United sporting director is not the most popular guy on Tyneside after pushing a move to Manchester United, for which we received £5 million in compensation.

The Red Devils’ efforts were ultimately futile, as Ashworth spent more time on gardening leave than he did at Old Trafford!

Still, Ashworth acquired a new job in football just this week, and he may look no farther than his already established relationship with Howe as he plans for his future with the England squad.

Ashworth already eyeing Howe?

Eddie Howe would “feature prominently” in negotiations chaired by FA first chief football officer Dan Ashworth over the succession plan for current England manager Thomas Tuchel, according to The Mail’s Craig Hope.

Ashworth served as our sporting director from February 2022 to February 2024 before leaving for a far shorter stint at Old Trafford, during which he proposed Howe as a replacement for Erik ten Hag, Hope revels.

One of his first jobs in his new post with the FA will be to set up a mechanism for replacing Tuchel if he does not renew his contract after the 2026 World Cup.

Craig Hope noted in Tuesday night’s Confidential column that Howe is expected to be one of the first names mentioned as a candidate for the position, having already been linked to the position prior to Tuchel’s appointment.

Despite claims that Howe and Ashworth’s relationship had been strained as a result of Ashworth’s departure from St. James’ Park, the two still share “mutual respect and understanding”.

However, it appears that Howe’s departure from the North East is premature given the early stage of the PIF project.

Howe’s just getting started!

It seems almost inevitable that Howe will one day be England’s manager, and deservedly so, but there is still much work to be done at Newcastle: more titles, establishing ourselves in the Champions League, and nurturing the excellent talent he has brought to Tyneside.

Furthermore, is he truly prepared to give up the day-to-day aspect of Premier League management, given how much he enjoys dealing with players on a daily basis?

I doubt we’ll have anything to worry about beyond the 2026 World Cup if Howe is granted the England position, given our present trend and plans to invest massively this summer.