Manchester United chief David Gill says Sir Alex Ferguson's successor must be aware of the traditions of the club.

Gill doesn't expect United's next manager to be a green rookie.

"I tend to agree with that," he said of the need for experience. "It's obviously crucial that the main person at any football club or an NFL team I suppose, is the coach. What happens on the pitch is crucial to all of our off-the-field aspirations and we have to understand that. So someone coming in to take over Manchester United will have to have that pedigree, will have to have that logical success and achievement because it's such a big club.

"But I think the other key asset, or key requirement for someone coming in, is to understand the history and heritage of the club, to understand how we work commercially and what we aim to achieve and to get the right balance there and make sure we can continue as seamlessly as possible as we have done under Sir Alex.

"Those are the things but identifying that person is not easy but I'm sure we'll get it right when that times comes and I stress that we don't know when that is."