Man Utd academy boss to join Everton

Manchester United director of academy Nick Cox is to become Everton's technical director.

Cox's departure from Old Trafford is said to be amicable and the 47-year-old will remain at the club to ensure a smooth transition.

It does promise to be a summer of change at United as under-18 coach Adam Lawrence and under-21 assistant coach David Hughes have also left, the latter to take over as manager at League Two Newport.

Cox is highly regarded in football circles and has been the subject of numerous job offers in recent years, both at home and abroad.

However, the chance at Everton under a new, ambitious ownership group was felt to be too good to turn down. The Blues' previous technical director Kevin Thelwell left at the end of the season and has since joined Rangers.

Senior United sources have paid tribute to Cox's work, stating he has overhauled every aspect of the club's academy, including operations, recruitment, analysis, performance and education.

During a difficult period at first-team level given the relative managerial churn, Cox has presided over 29 debuts from academy players since being appointed United's academy director in 2019.

United have also brought Alejandro Garnacho, Toby Collyer, Ayden Heaven, Chido Obi and Harry Amass into their academy from external sources in recent times, as the club look to target younger players as part of their rebuild.

Club sources estimate the club has made about £100m from the sale of academy players over the past three years.