Gary Neville says it would be the perfect time for Mike Phelan to take over as manager of Hull City.
Sky sources understand Phelan has emerged as the front-runner for the Tigers job after Steve Bruce stepped down from the role in July.
With Hull unable to secure the services of Chris Coleman or Gianfranco Zola, the 53-year-old is expected to be announced as the club's new manager ahead of their opening Premier League match against Leicester City on Saturday, live on Sky Sports.
Neville, who worked with Phelan as a player, says he is the right man for the job at Hull.
"He's wanted to take that top job [at Hull]," he told Sky Sports Now.
"This is a good opportunity for him. He knows the players well so he's not going into a job that he has to get used to them. He knows them and that's a massive positive for him and I wish him all the very best.
"He's got a lot of experience working at Manchester United and he's a number two so its perfect timing for him to go on his own, he's always wanted to do it.
"He knows the players, he knows the club very well so I think that's a big head-start."
Phelan is currently acting as Hull's caretaker manager and has led the team to pre-season wins over Scunthorpe, Nottingham Forest and Caykur Rizespor, a 2-2 draw against Barnsley and has suffered just one defeat, losing 2-1 to Torino in Austria on Saturday.
Phelan worked at Manchester United from 1999 to 2013 in a variety of roles ranging from first-team coach to assistant manager.