sport news John Murtough arrived at Man United nicknamed 'The Fixer' but leaves as the ... trends now
John Murtough is a studious character who, for the most part, has liked operating in the shadows.
Public interviews have not been his style - you have to dig deep in the archives to find a 2019 chat with commercial partner Gulf Oil totalling 144 seconds - while photos of him in Manchester United attire didn’t surface until an unveiling image in 2021 when he became director of football.
At Burnley earlier in the season he shuffled his feet and waited patiently by the tunnel to pick the bones out of United’s 1-0 win at Turf Moor with boss Erik ten Hag. There was, truth be told, little fuss around one of the main shot-callers at Manchester United.
‘The Fixer’ was the nickname affixed to him by some staff at Carrington. From when he joined the academy set-up in 2013 through to his decision to step down later this week, he had a knack of getting things done.
Take United’s transfer dealings during the Covid-19 pandemic as a case-in-point.
John Murtough was a private figure at Manchester United who rarely spoke in interviews
Murtough - who was key in bringing Erik ten Hag (L) to Old Trafford - will leave United as a figurehead of the club's demise having joined in 2013
Murtough flew out to Bergamo in Italy to grease the wheels to bring Amad Diallo from Atalanta to Old Trafford.
It was a key trip at a difficult time and Murtough, sources explained, would go on to see out his two-week quarantine holed up in his garage, which doubled as his office, at home.
He went on to be key to the appointment of Erik ten Hag, too, and deservedly drew praise for the Dutchman’s first season which delivered a Carabao Cup, a third-placed finish in the Premier League and an FA Cup final appearance. The growth of the women’s team and ascension of the academy are two positives credited to his tenure.
But there are no hiding places at United, no shadows in which to mask shortcomings in. Not when Ineos walked into United with a bright bulb flashlight to scrutinise every inch of the football operation.
He leaves as a figurehead of United’s recent demise; a chaotic recruitment strategy that has seen £518million spent on his watch as director of football, leaving a team left on the pitch that lacks both an identity and the sufficient talent to win the biggest trophies.
He was nicknamed 'The Fixer' but there are no hiding places at United. He has overseen a chaotic £518m spend that has left a team that is lacking in identity
Murtough grew up a Manchester United fan and held a membership for the club in his teenage years.
The 53-year-old, who was born in Longsight, Manchester, and went to school in Cheetham Hill and Gorton, has always been around football and broke into football administration in 1997 with Everton after completing a Master’s in sports psychology at Liverpool John Moores University.
Spells at Fulham and Coventry City followed - due to his great relationship with manager at the time, Chris Coleman - before he returned to Everton.
In 2012 he took on a job with the Premier League before joining Manchester United in late 2013 after being hand-picked and recommended by David Moyes.
What started out as an academy role soon escalated as he become more diligent in easing the workload on those above him. His power and influence grew quickly.
Murtough started out working in the United academy but his power and influence grew quickly - soon becoming one of the club's biggest shot-callers
His reports, and the detail which was in them, drew plaudits internally and CEO Ed Woodward did not hesitate to promote Murtough to be the club’s first director of football in 2021 despite surprise externally following an extensive three-year search which surveyed some of the most experienced directors in world football.
It has since been claimed that interest from Inter Miami provided leverage for Murtough, with Mike Forde, a consultant then used by David Beckham and a
