$6.5 billion worth Manchester United sign New York Knicks' performance director amid disappointing start to 2024-25 season
Former New York Knicks performance director Sam Erith has been picked up by Manchester United for the rest of the 2024-25 season. After a slow start to their Premier League season that has seen the football club go just 1-2, the team hired Erith as their interim performance director for the remainder of the season.
Following a third-place finish in the 2022-23 season, which saw the team win the EFL Cup, the team finished last season in eighth place in the Premier League standings. Given their struggles last season, the club which is valued at $6.5 billion according to Forbes, is eager to turn things around.
As a result, they have hired Sam Erith, who the New York Times calls a specialist in player performance and sports science. Erith, who had previously been working for Madison Square Garden Sports with the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers, is tasked with helping manager Erik ten Hag steer the ship in Manchester.
The move was announced on Thursday, with the New York Times reporting that Erith will begin his tenure with the famed football club beginning on Monday, where he will report to sporting director Dan Ashworth.
The move coincides with an off-week for Manchester United following their latest loss, with their next match scheduled for Saturday, Sep. 14 against Southampton, before a third-round EFL Cup match on Tuesday, Sep. 17.
Looking at the New York Knicks' performance under Sam Erith's tenure as performance director
According to LinkedIn, Sam Erith joined Madison Square Garden Sports in November 2022, working with both the New York Knicks and the New York Rangers.
Prior to Erith's work with the New York Knicks, the franchise had made the playoffs just twice in the past ten seasons. Since he began working with the franchise early in the 2022-23 season, the team has made back-to-back appearances in the playoffs.
In his first year working with the franchise, the Knicks finished the regular season with 47 wins, the most since the 2012-13 season. In the postseason, the team made it to the Eastern Conference Semifinals before getting eliminated. Although they came up short of their ultimate goal of winning a title, the second-round appearance was their best postseason result since the 2012-13 season.
Last year, the Knicks again managed to improve even more, winning 50 of their 82 games while making a return to the Eastern Conference Semis.
With Sam Erith no longer a part of Madison Square Garden Sports, it will not only be interesting to see how the New York Knicks perform but also how Manchester United fares as the club looks to bounce back from a tough 2023-24 season and a slow start to the 2024-25 season.