Matt1892

I think the argument from Ashworth’s camp will be that the covenant isn’t reasonable, as to be enforceable it should not be longer than is reasonably necessary to protect those interests. They will likely argue that it won’t protect any business interests, as Ashworth has already been out of the loop regarding company business due to him being on gardening leave for the previous 12 months before leaving the company. All guesswork by the way.

If I had to guess on the position it would be that Ashworth has a 12 month notice and then a 6 month restrictive covenant to stop him working for a rival during that time, meaning he wouldn’t be able to join Man Utd until just before the January 2026 window. If that is the case then his angle at arbitration should be that the covenant isn’t fair, as they are only enforceable if inserted to protect legitimate business interests and extend no further than is reasonably necessary to protect those interests. I think he could make a reasonable argument that this isn’t the case, meaning he could leave and work for Man Utd when his contract ends, which he will see as a move to making negotiations easier. I am still not sure that the club would do a deal under those circumstances, if anything they will double down.

An employer can put whatever notice period they want in to a contract. However, that doesn’t mean it is enforceable. The only way to test that in this case would be for Ashworth to give a leaving date before his notice period was due to end, then defend himself on it not being enforceable when the club go after him for breach of contract, although even if he did do that he would still have the covenants within his contract for not working for a competitor for a set period. I am not sure what his notice is by the way, I don’t think it has been made clear what time period is his notice and what the length of time is the restricted covenant. If he did walk out before his contract finished he would be liable for any costs we could prove were associated by his departure. Again, that isn’t without even considering the covenant within his contract.

No, he cannot buy himself out.

I work within employment law and it doesn’t work like that, the scope of an Employment Tribunal is limited and you cannot go there on the grounds of thinking it isn’t fair that your employer won’t let you leave without completing the notice period you are contractually committed to. Even if he did raise it to an Employment Tribunal, it would never get as far as a full case hearing as he would have to set out what specific part of legislation his employer has broken and their isn’t any regarding him signing a notice that he no longer wants to work, which is why people can’t go purely on the grounds of thinking their employer isn’t being fair. They would judge that his case has no reasonable prospects of being successful and the case would never be heard.

You cannot go to an Employment Tribunal if you are not happy with something in your contract though, you certainly cannot go if you think your employer is being unfair.

It is uncommon in the UK.

Ashworth can’t go to an Employment Tribunal though, his options are he negotiates his way out of an early release or he ends his notice early and we try to have an injunction put in place to stop him working for Man Utd, or having to claim compensation. By going to arbitration we will be confident of our position under employment law and Ashworth will not be able to walk out.

Why?

If you agree to go in to arbitration you also enter in to agreement that the outcome will be binding, so there won’t be court action after if one party doesn’t agree with the outcome.

It isn’t Man Utd that are part of arbitration, it is Ashworth seeking release from his contractual obligations. We would have agreed to go in to arbitration thinking we are both comfortable in our position and to stop an even bigger bun fight if he was to resign with immediate effect and we have to put in an injunction.

With no conclusion in sight, Ashworth intends to seek a proactive resolution in a case which will be decided by a third party - although it is felt Newcastle are confident in their position https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cyx6pv55y1do

It isn’t the sort of thing you would have in UK employment contracts as you can’t have something that would take away an individuals statutory rights.

I was about to post this, if we are going in to arbitration it will be voluntary on our part, with both parties agreeing to abide by the outcome. This isn’t about agreeing a fee either, as if our position is that we believe he has to remain on gardening leave as per his contract, then it is extremely unlikely that an arbitrator will go against employment law, unless they consider the covenants to be unreasonable. Notice that Man Utd are not involved in this, so it will be Ashworth arguing his release.

I went to the Wolves vs Bournemouth game tonight, Bournemouth’s brand of football is excellent and they will be lucky to keep Iraola longer than another season. It took a few months for the players to understand what he wanted from them but since then they have kicked on to another level, I would say they are better than Brighton in terms of attractive football.

I’ve said it on here before how he reminds me of James Milner in his style of play.

We have only had three league victories in a row once this season I believe, outside of that we have only had back to back victories on 2 other occasions, including today. If we can get some sort of form which should be achievable considering our run of games, then there is no reason why we shouldn’t come 6th, anything else will need a capitulation from either Spurs of Villa. Extremely unlikely but all we can do is put as much pressure on as possible.

Outstanding performance today. Solid defensively, pressed well in attack and aggressive all over the pitch. We need to keep this up with the run of games we have but no reason why we can’t.

Villa did the same didn’t they? As in sold their stadium to the owners.

What a fantastic initiative. On a separate point, I’ve heard there has been issues with the new adidas shirts not meeting the quality checks so there could be delays with these going on sale if they can’t sort it.

You have to feel sorry for Willock, he is rushed back and playing despite clearly not being 100% fit to support the team, which is impacting his ability to both recover and get his fitness back and all he gets for it is fans wanting him sold.

Gray looks a great prospect and if FFP wasn’t an issue I would be all for it. However, it is an issue and we need first team players now. We have committed a chunk of money to Lewis Hall as a prospect, Leeds will be looking for a similar amount minimum for Gray.

That was a great goal.

No, they only review handballs in the area I think.

If anything the Fulham player jumped in to Burn, who then pushed him away to help keep his balance after the ball had gone over the pair of them.