Former Manchester United striker Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the frontrunner to become the club's caretaker boss until the end of the season, Sky Sports News understands.
The 45-year-old is currently in charge of Norwegian side Molde but is linked with taking temporary charge of United following the sacking of Jose Mourinho on Tuesday morning.
A senior figure at Molde, whose season does not start again until the end of March, declined to say whether Solskjaer will remain as their manager.
United are also understood to be interested in hiring a technical director for the first time in their history with the new man expected to be in place before they appoint a permanent successor to Mourinho in the summer.
Solskjaer made 235 Premier League appearances for United, hitting 91 goals including the injury-time winner in United's 1999 Champions League final against Bayern Munich.
Solskjaer managed United's reserve side from 2008 for two years before leaving for Molde.
He then had a disastrous eight-month spell in charge at Cardiff City in 2014 before returning to Molde in 2015 and has just signed a new three-year deal until the end of the 2021 season.
United's executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward believes the caretaker boss - who will be announced in the next 48 hours - should know the club, and understand its traditions along with its culture of attacking football.
Michael Carrick will take care of first-team affairs before a manager is put in charge until the end of the season.