Newcastle United were linked with a move to land Paul Mitchell and it now looks like he will be leaving Monaco in the very near future.
Newcastle have been chasing a director of football ever since PIF completed their takeover of the club back in October.
A host of names have been linked with the job, with Jason Wilcox to Michael Emenalo and even Ramon Planes.
It now looks like Brighton and Hove Albion’s Dan Ashworth will be joining the club, at least when compensation is sorted anyway.
Another name floated was Mitchell, with the Daily Mail reporting in October that PIF were interested in the Englishman.
A well-respected talent spotter, Mitchell emerged with Southampton before following Mauricio Pochettino to Tottenham Hotspur.
A stint with RB Leipzig followed before Monaco pounced, making Mitchell their sporting director in 2020.
Monaco may have beaten Paris Saint-Germain 3-0 today, but Mitchell is now being primed for the chopping block in a mass exodus.
L’Equipe claim that president Dimitri Rybolovlev is planning to clear house; Mitchell, manager Philippe Clement and vice-president Oleg Petrov are set to go.
Whether that hammering of PSG changes things remains to be seen, but it sounds like Mitchell is leaving Monaco after two years with the club.
Many English clubs would probably love to have Mitchell, who is credited with bringing Son Heung-min to Tottenham back in 2015.
Newcastle would be wise to see if Mitchell would work alongside Ashworth in an exciting recruitment team, with his imminent availability surely of great interest.
No matter what, Mitchell will surely have a long future in scouting and recruitment to come, even if Monaco are ready to let him go.
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