Manchester United line up former Scotland striker to take over as head of recruitment

Crystal Palace sporting director wanted by new co-owners at Old Trafford

Manchester United are lining up an approach for Crystal Palace sporting director Dougie Freedman.

Former Scotland striker Dougie Freedman is being lined to become the new head of recruitment at Manchester United.

According to various reports, the Crystal Palace sporting director has been identified as the preferred candidate for the role following the partial takeover of the club by Sir Jim Ratcliffe's Ineos group.

United are expected to make an official approach for the 49-year-old in the coming days with Freedman said to be open to the move despite his strong relationship with Palace chairman Steve Parish.

As a player, Freedman was a cult hero at Selhurst Park, making 368 appearances and scoring 108 goals across two spells. He also had a successful period as manager before returning as sporting director in 2017.

He played a key role in the appointment of Patrick Viera in 2021 and has also been praised for his recruitment which has included deals for talented duo Marc Guehi and Michael Olise as well as the loan signing of Chelsea’s Conor Gallagher. Other notable acquisitions include the £18m signing of Cheick Doucoure from Lens, Eberechi Eze for £16m from QPR and the £15m arrival of defender Joachim Andersen from Lyon.

United’s interest comes after prospective technical director Dan Ashworth and chief executive Omar Berrada were both placed on gardening leave from Newcastle United and Manchester City respectively.

Freedman, who was born in Glasgow but spent his entire playing career in England, scored on his senior international debut for Scotland in a 2-1 win over Latvia in 2001 but only managed to add one further cap.