Manchester United appoint Jason Wilcox as technical director, Southampton angered

Manchester United have appointed Jason Wilcox as their new technical director. Jason resigned from his role at Southampton because he was interested in the United project.

Despite Wilcox having resigned from his role at Southampton several days ago, the club refused to accept a compensation fee from United. The Saints believe their technical director is leaving them at a crucial time in the season, and they deserve more compensation.

Southampton are in the middle of a promotion fight, though their hopes suffered a major setback following a stoppage time defeat to Ipswich Town on Monday.

The relationship between Wilcox and Southampton manager Russell Martin remains very good and strong, though his departure from the club was not on mutual terms. Jason Wilcox joined Southampton last summer after 11 years at Manchester City academy. His role at Southampton was his first at such level, with his previous experiences being at the academy level.

However, he performed so well in nine months, a period that saw him supervise the recruitment of Russell Martin as manager. He also saw the arrival of Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Shea Charles on loan from Manchester City.

Martin gave a brief comment about the ongoing situation after their late defeat, which left them 12 points from the second-place spot.

“I would say give me at least 10 minutes to get over the disappointment of tonight, and we’ll chat at some point this week, and I’m sure I’ll have more for you,” Martin said via Sky Sports.

He added, “I’ve not spoken to the club [about it]. You know my feelings on Jason, and I’ll have a chat with him after. I’ve just had a text saying how proud he was of the performance. The rest is, once I am told, I will let you know.”

The former Manchester City Head of Academy is set to become a key part of Manchester United’s new era, with INEOS leading this process. He will join the incoming sporting director, Dan Ashworth, to form a crucial recruitment setup at Old Trafford.