Newcastle have chosen Paul Mitchell as their new sporting director after trying to replace Dan Ashworth.
The 42-year-old beat 777 Partners sporting director Johannes Spors to the role, while Marseille’s Pablo Longoria also reached the final stages of the process.
Mitchell had previously been linked to Manchester United The role eventually taken by Ashworth and the final decision to choose him had the support of boss Eddie Howe in the process being run by executive search firm Odgers Berndston.
He started as MK Dons’ first head of recruitment in 2010, having played for them between 2005 and 2009, and just two years later joined Southamptonwith the club promoted in its first season
After almost three years on the south coast, he moved to Tottenham where he helped bring in Son Heung-min, Dele Alli, Kieran Trippier and Toby Alderweireld.
He left Spurs after just two years in 2016 and came close to joining Norwich a year later, before moving to RB Leipzig in February 2018.
There, he brought Emile Smith Rowe on loan from Arsenal and Matheus Cunha, now at Wolvesde Sion before leaving for Monaco two years later, spending three years in France.
“It was a very difficult decision,” Mitchell told French newspaper Nice-Matin of his decision to leave Monaco in October last year.
“I loved my experience at this club. I always felt a lot of support from president Dmitry Rybolovlev. We had several discussions about my mission, about the possibility of changing roles within the club, of extending my contract.
“I feel that the mission I had, which was to rebuild the sports project, was accomplished.”
